Kasprowy Wierch

Summary

  • Coordinates: 19°14’N 19°59’E
  • Height: 5 m
  • Base level: 1989 m ASL
  • Country: Poland
  • InGOS observations: CH4, N2O, SF6, H2
  • Responsible partner: AGH-UST
  • Responsible PI: Jaroslaw Necki (necki@agh.edu.pl)
  • TNA access: access request page
  • Website:

KAS_panorama

General

At the top of Tatra mountain peak (1989m a.s.l.), nearest city is Zakopane (6km north and approx. 1000m down), Central Carpathian Mountains. High-altitude site located on top of Kasprowy Wierch mountain, in the Polish Tatra, ca. 400 meter above the tree line. The Kasprowy Wierch Trace Gas Measurement Station (KASLAB) has been established in 1994 as a first Polish remote observatory where main greenhouse gases (CO2 and CH4) were measured with high precision. The existing record of atmospheric mixing ratios of these two gases covers 20 years and is one of the longest in this part of Europe.

KAS1
AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow (AGH-UST), with more than 33 thousands students, is the second largest technical university in Poland. Basic organizational framework is provided by 15 Faculties and by the Inter-faculty School of Engineering and Biomedicine. Teaching and research is conducted by ca. 1840 permanent staff, ranging from full professors (ca. 150)to assistants and lecturers (ca. 400). Research activities of AGH-UST encompass eight major subject areas: (i) Information Technologies, (ii) New Materials and Technologies, (iii) Environment and Climate Changes, (iv) Energy and its Supplies, (v) Mining (vi) Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (vii) Exact and Natural Sciences (viii) Social-Economic Sciences and Humanities. AGH University of Science and Technology is an important centre of creating and transferring innovative technologies and ideas.

Infrastructure and facilities

  • Laboratory occupies one room (2.5m x 3.5m)
  • There are 2 automated gas chromatographs (HP5890 with ECD and FID; PP1) working in continuous mode at the station.
  • Set of 6 cylinders with standardized mixtures are available (2 cylinders from NOAA(2006), 4 cylinders from Jena(2014)).
  • Scientific programme of the station includes: atmospheric mixing ratios of CO2, CH4,CO, N2O, SF6, H2 (GC technique), with time resolution of 3 to 4 meas-urements per hour and radiocarbon content in monthly cumulative samples of atmospheric CO2-cooperation with IAEA and international radiocarbon community.

AGH-UST will provide: Physical access to the site, engineering and infrastructure support equivalent to that provided to existing measurement programmes at the site, advice on sampling protocols most suitable to the station. Flask sample collection of dried and raw atmospheric air. Intercalibration services for routinely measured gases.KAS9

References based on Kasprowy Wierch observations

  • Impact of emissions on atmospheric composition at Kasprowy Wierch based on results of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide monitoring / Jarosław M. NĘCKI, Łukasz Chmura, Mirosław ZIMNOCH, Kazimierz RÓŻAŃSKI // Polish Journal of Environmental Studies ; ISSN 1230-1485. — 2013 vol. 22 no. 4, s. 1119–1127
  • Two decades of regular observations of {^{14}CO_{2}} and {^{13}CO_{2}} content in atmospheric carbon dioxide in central Europe: long-term changes of regional anthropogenic fossil {CO_{2}} emissions / T. KUC, K. RÓŻAŃSKI, M. ZIMNOCH, J. NĘCKI, Ł. CHMURA, D. JELEŃ // Radiocarbon ; ISSN 0033-8222. — 2007 vol. 49 no. 2 s. 807–816
  • Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide in Southern Poland: comparison of mountain and urban environments / L. CHMURA, K. RÓŻAŃSKI, J. M. NĘCKI, M. ZIMNOCH, A. KORUS, M. PYCIA // Polish Journal of Environmental Studies ; ISSN 1230-1485. — 2008 vol. 17 no. 6 s. 859–867