Northeast Corridor Urban Test Bed

Northeast Corridor Project Overview and Goals

The Northeast Corridor Urban Test Bed project has a goal of quantifying greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in the US Northeast, with a current focus on the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland urban regions.

Observational Network

GHG concentrations in the Northeast United States are measured with a suite of instrumentation on aircraft and on a high-accuracy tower network around the region. Airborne measurement flights are conducted by the University of Maryland’s Fluxes of Atmospheric Greenhouse Gases in Maryland project (FLAGG-MD) and by Purdue University. Tower observations are conducted in collaboration with Earth Networks, Inc..

We are also investigating how the urban biosphere influences GHG fluxes. This NIST-FOREST project uses the NIST’s 24 hectare forest as a test bed. 

Emissions Modeling and Atmospheric Simulations

To estimate urban GHG emissions, observations of GHG concentrations are coupled with atmospheric transport and dispersion models and statistical analysis methods (inversions). A critical component of this effort is the ability to model GHG dispersion using an atmospheric transport model, which is often driven by archived meteorological model fields. We are currently investigating the effects of both the meteorological and dispersion models on the resulting flux estimates. We are also developing new statistical methods for incorporating more realistic error structures into the inverse analysis. 

Contact Information

For more information or requests regarding the NIST Northeast Corridor Urban Testbed, please email Anna.Karion [at] nist.gov (Anna[dot]Karion[at]nist[dot]gov) or James.Whetstone [at] nist.gov (James[dot]Whetstone[at]nist[dot]gov)

This work is funded and conducted by NIST in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the University of Maryland, Purdue University, Northern Arizona University, and Earth Networks.