Hello, everyone, I would want to know how many vertical layers is recommended to use in the Meterological Profile file (PFL) to be used on AERMOD?
Maybe only two levels (2 and 10 meters) or should be more?
I am not an expert, but googling found this resource that recommends using all vertical levels.
7.3.3 Upper Air Data
AERMET needs full upper air soundings to calculate the convective mixing height. For
AERMOD applications in the U.S., the early morning sounding, usually the 1200 UTC
(Universal Time Coordinate) sounding, is typically used for this purpose. Upper air soundings
can be obtained from the Radiosonde Data of North America CD for the period 1946-1997.
Upper air soundings for 1994 through the present are also available for free download from the
Radiosonde Database Access website. Users should choose all levels or mandatory and
significant pressure levels14 when selecting upper air data. Selecting mandatory levels only
would not be adequate for input into AERMET as the use of just mandatory levels would not
provide an adequate characterization of the potential temperature profile.
For additional support, please submit your question to the AERMOD help desk.
https://www.epa.gov/scram/forms/contact-us-about-air-quality-models