The ATLAS-MOHAMMED V Atmospheric Research Station is operated by Mohammed V University (UM5) Rabat, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS-ICARE, Orléans) and Orléans University. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 690958.
Mission
- To monitor long-term trends of atmospheric composition change, air pollution and climate variables
- To promote knowledge transfer and education in the areas of atmospheric, air pollution and climate sciences
- To support policy development
Location
Ifrane is located at an altitude of 1660 meters above sea level in the Middle Atlas region, about 65 km from both Fes and Meknes cities. Ifrane is a European styled town and is often referred to as “Morocco’s Switzerland.” It is surrounded by cedar forests, and pastureland that comes to life in spring and winter is a sharp contrast to the hot and dry climate that surrounds it.
The Atlas-Mohammed V Atmospheric Research Station (GPS coordinates :33.406152, -5.103319) is situated in Michlifen, about 19 km south from downtown of the Ifrane city and is located at an altitude of about 2000 meters above sea level in a remote area.
Atlas-Mohammed V Facility location on the map:
Instrumentation at Atlas-Mohammed V
- Aerosol Instrumentation
- DIGITEL High Volume Aerosol Sampler (DHA-80) to sample dust and aerosol particles for later assessment and analysis at TROPOS (Leipzig-Germany)
- LOAC (Light Optical Aerosol Counter), based on scattering measurements that allows for some typology identification of particles (droplets, carbonaceous, salts, and mineral dust) in addition to sizesegregated counting in a large diameter range from 0.2 μm up to possibly more than 100 μm.
- Gas Instrumentation
Monitoring of NO, NO2 and O3 is achieved through deployment of specific analyzers. - Meteorological Instrumentation
Basic meteorological products include wind speed, direction, precipitation, visibility, and UV radiation. - Data Infrastructure
All measurement systems are networked locally and data is transmitted in near real time to CNRS-ICARE servers. Real time data is available from the facility.
Contacts
CNRS-ICARE (Orléans-France) | University Mohammed V (Rabat-Morocco) |
Wahid Mellouki CNRS – ICARE (UPR 3021) Institut de Combustion, Aérothermique, Réactivité et Environnement 1C, Avenue de la Recherche Scientifique CS 50060 45071 Orléans cedex 2, France Tel: +33620180174 mellouki@cnrs-orleans.fr |
Mimoun Harnafi Institut Scientifique Université Mohammed V, Rabat, Morocco Tel: +212662027027 harnafi@israbat.ac.ma |
Veronique Daele CNRS – ICARE (UPR 3021) Institut de Combustion, Aérothermique, Réactivité et Environnement 1C, Avenue de la Recherche Scientifique CS 50060 45071 Orléans cedex 2, France Tel: +33238255494 veronique.daele@cnrs-orleans.fr |
Rajâa Cherkaoui Faculté des Sciences, 4 Avenue Ibn Battouta, B.P. 1014 RP, Rabat, Morocco. Tel: +212 6 61 47 11 85 rajaa.cherkaoui@um5.ac.ma |
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