THE USE OF MODIS DATA TO EXTRACT A DUST STORM PRODUCT

Iraq in the summer is affected by low pressure centered in the area of Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, and the high pressure region in the plateau of Anatolia. This climate system causes that the Shamal wind blows from the plateau of Anatolia in the north and northwest with relatively cold temperature. From mid-June to mid-September, the wind is accompanied with intensive heating of the earth surface causing dust storms rising up to thousand meters in the atmosphere above Iraq region. In recent years, the frequency of dust storm events was increased in Iraq and its surrounding regions due to the long drought seasons. Unsupervised classification method was used to determine the intensity of the dust storm and to identify the area of dust cloud. In this study, we were able to map dust storm over Iraq region using MODIS Terra and Aqua satellite data within thermal bands (band 31 and 32), and visible band VIS (band 1). Other thermal band (band 21) was used to produce RGB composite image specifying the dust storm. A spectral subtraction between two bands was also used to produce another RGB composite image to obtain better detection for the dust storm over Iraq region

The Vertical variations of Atmospheric Methane (CH4) concentrations over selected cities in Iraq based on AIRS data

يوفر مسبار الأشعة تحت الحمراء (AIRS) المحمول على القمر الصناعي EOS / Aqua قياسات متنوعة لتوزيع الميثان (CH4) عند مستويات ضغط مختلفة في الغلاف الجوي للارض. يركز هذا البحث على تحليل الاختلافات الرأسية لبيانات السلاسل الزمنية لـ (CH4) نسبة الخلط الحجمي (VMR) عند أربعة مستويات ضغط قياسية SPL (925 و 850 و 600 و 300 hPa)  في طبقة التروبوسفير فوق ست مدن في العراق من كانون الثاني 2003 إلى أيلول 2016.  تظهر نتائج تحليل المتوسط الشهري لبيانات السلاسل الزمنية لـ CH4VMR زيادة كبيرة بين عامي 2003 و 2016 ,وخاصة بين 2009 و2016؛ كانت القيم الادنى في عام 2003 بينما القيم الاعلى كانت في عام 2016. التوزيع الرأسي لـ (CH4) كان مرتفعًا نسبيًا في المدن الواقعة في شمال العراق (السليمانية والموصل) أكثر من المدن الاخرى، خاصة تلك التي في غرب العراق (الرطبة والنجف). أعلى متوسط شهري لـ CH4VMR والانحراف المعياري كان في السليمانية (1871± 21.92 ) ppbv عند 925 hPa ، بينما اقل متوسط كان في الرطبة (1812.81±37.3) ppbvعند 300 hPa . الموصل لديها ثاني أعلى متوسط وانحراف معياري بعد السليمانية ، خاصة في المستويات الدنيا SPL (925 و 850hPa ) من التروبوسفير أكثر من بقية المدن المختارة. يظهر التباين الموسمي لـ CH4VMR الشهري ، المتوسط من 2003 إلى 2016 ، قيمًا مرتفعة بين كانون الثاني و آب مع ذروة بين آب وأيلول وينخفض بشكل كبير بين تشرين الاول و كانون الاول مع زيادة طفيفة في تشرين الثاني. يُظهر تحليل الاتجاه طويل المدى لـ CH4VMR الشهري لكل SPL (925 ، 850 ، 600 و 300 ) hPa فوق المدن الست قيمًا موجبة بمتوسط معدلات نمو لكل SPL تساوي (2.9٪ و 3.1٪ و 3.6٪ و 3.9٪ ) ، على التوالي. تشير هذه النتائج إلى أن قياسات الأقمار الصناعية كانت فعالة في تحديد مقدار زيادة CH4 فوق العراق والتي قد تساهم في الزيادة العالمية لـ CH4 في الغلاف الجوي للأرض.The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on EOS/Aqua satellite provides diverse measurements of Methane (CH4) distribution at different pressure levels in the Earth's atmosphere. The focus of this research is to analyze the vertical variations of (CH4) volume mixing ratio (VMR) time-series data at four Standard pressure levels SPL (925, 850, 600, and 300 hPa) in the troposphere above six cities in Iraq from January 2003 to September 2016. The analysis results of monthly average CH4VMR time-series data show a significant increase between 2003 and 2016, especially from 2009 to 2016; the minimum values of CH4 were in 2003 while the maximum values were in 2016. The vertical distribution of CH4 was relatively high in the cities located in the north of Iraq (Sulaymaniyah and Mosul) more than other cities, especially these in western Iraq (Rutba and Najaf). The highest monthly mean of CH4VMR and standard deviation (SD) was in Sulaymaniyah (1871.11±21.92) ppbv at 925 hPa, while the lowest was in Rutba (1812.81±37.3) ppbv at 300 hPa. Mosul has the second-highest mean and SD next to Sulaymaniyah, especially at the lower levels SPL (925 and 850 hPa) of troposphere more than the rest of selected cities. The seasonal variation of monthly CH4VMR, averaged from 2003 to 2016, shows high values between January and August with a peak between August and September and it declines significantly between October and December with a slight increase in November. Long term trend analysis of monthly CH4VMR at each SPL (925, 850, 600, and 300) hPa above the six cities shows positive values with average growth rates for each SPL equal to (2.9 %, 3.1%, 3.6 %, and 3.9%), respectively. These results indicate that satellite measurements were effective in determining the magnitude of increased CH4 over Iraq that may contribute to the global increase of CH4 in the earth’s Atmosphere

The Use of Modis Data to Extract a Dust Storm Product

Iraq in the summer is affected by low pressure centered in the area of Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, and the high pressure region in the plateau of Anatolia. This climate system causes that the Shamal wind blows from the plateau of Anatolia in the north and northwest with relatively cold temperature. From mid-June to mid-September, the wind is accompanied with intensive heating of the earth surface causing dust storms rising up to thousand meters in the atmosphere above Iraq region. In recent years, the frequency of dust storm events was increased in Iraq and its surrounding regions due to the long drought seasons. Unsupervised classification method was used to determine the intensity of the dust storm and to identify the area of dust cloud. In this study, we were able to map dust storm over Iraq region using MODIS Terra and Aqua satellite data within thermal bands (band 31 and 32), and visible band VIS (band 1). Other thermal band (band 21) was used to produce RGB composite image specifying the dust storm. A spectral subtraction between two bands was also used to produce another RGB composite image to obtain better detection for the dust storm over Iraq region.p.70-77: ilus. ; 30 c

A High Thermal Conductivity of MgO-H₂O Nanofluid Prepared by Two-Step Technique

In this paper, the main goal is to study the impact of nanopowder volume concentration and ultrasonication treatment time on the stability and thermophysical properties of MgO-DW nanofluid at room temperature. The co-precipitation method was utilized to prepare pure MgO nanoparticles with an average particle size of 33 nm. The prepared MgO nanopowder was characterized by using XRD, SEM, and EDX analyses. Then, MgO-DW nanofluid was obtained with different volume concentrations (i.e., 0.05, 0.1, 0.15, 0.2, and 0.25 vol.%) and different ultrasonication time periods (i.e., 45, 90, 135, and 180 min) by using a novel two-step technique. With volume concentration and ultrasonication time of 0.15 vol.% and 180 min, respectively, good stability was achieved, according to the zeta potential analysis. With increasing volume concentration and ultrasonication time period of the nanofluid samples, the thermal conductivity measurements showed significant increases. As a result, the maximum enhancement was found to be 25.08% at a concentration ratio of 0.25 vol.% and agitation time of 180 min. Dynamic viscosity measurements revealed two contrasting trends with volume concentration and ultrasonication time. The lowest value of relative viscosity was gained by 0.05 vol.% MgO-DW nanofluid. The chemical and physical interactions between MgO nanoparticles and DW molecules play an important function in determining the thermal conductivity and dynamic viscosity of MgO-DW nanofluid. These findings exhibit that MgO-DW nanofluid has the potential to be used as an advanced heat transfer fluid in cooling systems and heat exchangers

A High Thermal Conductivity of MgO-H₂O Nanofluid Prepared by Two-Step Technique

In this paper, the main goal is to study the impact of nanopowder volume concentration and ultrasonication treatment time on the stability and thermophysical properties of MgO-DW nanofluid at room temperature. The co-precipitation method was utilized to prepare pure MgO nanoparticles with an average particle size of 33 nm. The prepared MgO nanopowder was characterized by using XRD, SEM, and EDX analyses. Then, MgO-DW nanofluid was obtained with different volume concentrations (i.e., 0.05, 0.1, 0.15, 0.2, and 0.25 vol.%) and different ultrasonication time periods (i.e., 45, 90, 135, and 180 min) by using a novel two-step technique. With volume concentration and ultrasonication time of 0.15 vol.% and 180 min, respectively, good stability was achieved, according to the zeta potential analysis. With increasing volume concentration and ultrasonication time period of the nanofluid samples, the thermal conductivity measurements showed significant increases. As a result, the maximum enhancement was found to be 25.08% at a concentration ratio of 0.25 vol.% and agitation time of 180 min. Dynamic viscosity measurements revealed two contrasting trends with volume concentration and ultrasonication time. The lowest value of relative viscosity was gained by 0.05 vol.% MgO-DW nanofluid. The chemical and physical interactions between MgO nanoparticles and DW molecules play an important function in determining the thermal conductivity and dynamic viscosity of MgO-DW nanofluid. These findings exhibit that MgO-DW nanofluid has the potential to be used as an advanced heat transfer fluid in cooling systems and heat exchangers