S. Trivikrama Rao
Research Professor, Environmental Sciences
Office: 50 Wolf Road - Room 198
Phone: (518) 457-3200; Fax: (518) 485-8410; E-Mail: strao@dec.state.ny.us
B.S. (Mathematics, Physics & Chemistry), 1962, Andhra Loyola College, India
M.Sc. (Tech.) (Geophysics), 1965, Andhra University, India
Ph.D. (Atmospheric Science), 1973, State University of New York at Albany
Fellow of the American Meteorological Society and the Air & Waste Management Association
Research Interest:
Air pollution meteorology, turbulence & diffusion, regional- and urban-scale modeling of air pollution, meteorological statistics, analysis and interpretation of environmental data.
Biogenic and anthropogenic sources of emissions are responsible for air pollution problems such as ozone, fine particulate matter, acid rain, visibility impairment, etc. Once released into the atmosphere, some pollutants are transported long distances by the prevailing winds, contributing to air pollution problems on a regional-scale. The entire process of atmospheric transport, transformation, diffusion and deposition must be fully understood to quantitatively examine the source-receptor relationships for air contaminants.
The models are being used to examine the cause and effect relationships, and to identify strategies for controlling air pollution. Our current research is aimed at developing methods for evaluating air quality models and integrating observations and modeling results to examine the effectiveness of environmental management strategies. We are also developing and applying statistical methods for the analysis and interpretation of complex environmental data sets.
Our research involves computer simulation modeling and applications of statistical techniques for studying air pollution
problems. We are conducting collaborative research involving faculty at the University of Athens in Greece, University of
Idaho, Cornell University, Harvard University, Rutgers University, Pennsylvania State University, University of Maryland,
Columbia University, and with scientists at several State and Federal agencies in the U.S. and Canada.
Advised Theses
Masters:
Leon Sedefian - Characteristics of turbulence and diffusion of pollutants near major highways, 1977.
Jon Pleim - A comparative study of two trajectory models of long-range transport, 1982.
Eli Jacks - An examination of the MOS temperature prediction model, 1984.
Eric Zalewsky - Trends in temperature-adjusted ozone over eastern United States, 1995.
Jennifer Flaum - Application of an adaptive moving average filter to climate and air quality data, 1995.
Christian Hogrefe - Detecting biases and trends in ozonesonde data, 1996.
Meghan Milanchus - Filtering the effects of meteorology on ambient ozone concentrations, 1997.
Daniel Chan - Linking changes in ozone to changes in meteorology and emissions, 1998.
Georgios Athanassiadis - Spatial and temporal variations in the trace elemental data over the northeastern United States, 2000.
Doctoral:
Jia-Yeong Ku - Numerical simulation of air pollution in urban areas, 1984. (Received P.C. Lemon Ecology Award)
Elvira Brankov - Influence of atmospheric transport on ozone and toxic air contaminants in the Northeastern United States, 1998. (Won Outstanding Dissertation Award)
Jian Zhang - Effects of vertical mixing and photochemical processes on the ground-level ozone in the Northeast, 1998.
Christian Hogrefe - Evaluating the regional-scale photochemical modeling systems and using them for regulatory policy-making, 2000.
Jhumoor Biswas - Uncertainties in photochemical modeling of ozone and its precursors in the eastern United States, 2000.
Publications During 1999-2000:
"Linking changes in ozone to changes in emissions and meteorology" D. Chan, S.T. Rao, I. G. Zurbenko, and P.S. Porter, In Air Pollution VII, WIT Press, July 1999
"Identifying pollution source regions using multiply-censored data" E. Brankov, S.T. Rao, and P.S. Porter, Environmental Science & Technology, Vol. 33, No. 13, 1999
"Spatial and temporal variation in the mixing depth over the northeastern United States during the summer of 1995," Journal of Applied Meteorology, Vol. 38, N0. 12, December 1999
"The role of vertical mixing in the temporal evolution of ground-level ozone concentrations," J. Zhang and S.T. Rao, Journal of Applied Meteorology, Vol. 38, No. 12, pp 1674-1691, December 1999
"The impact of urban trees on ozone in the northeastern United States" D. Nowak, K. Civerolo, S.T. Rao, G. Sistla, C. Luley, and D. Crane, Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 34, pp 1615-1661, 2000
"The effects of land use in meteorological modeling: Implications for assessment of future air quality scenarios, Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 34, pp 1615-1661, 2000
"Effects of changes in data reporting practices on trend assessments" R. Henry, S.T. Rao, I.G. Zurbenko, and P.S. Porter, Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 34, pp 2659-2662, 2000
"An integrated modeling and observational approach for designing ozone control strategies for the Eastern U.S.," S.T. Rao, C. Hogrefe, G. Sistla, S.Y. Wu, W. Hao, E. Zalewsky, I. Zurbenko, P. S. Porter, G. Kallos, K. Lagouvardos, V. Kotroni, D.A. Hansen, M. Smith, In Air Pollution Modeling and Its Applications, Edited by S.E. Gryning and E. Batchavarova, Plenum Press, 2000
"How should the photochemical models be used in guiding emission management decisions" S.T. Rao et al., Proceedings of the NATO-CCMS international technical meeting of Air Pollution Modeling and Its Applications, Boulder, CO, May 2000
"Interpreting the information in ozone observations and model predictions relevant to regulatory policies in the eastern United States" C. Hogrefe, S.T. Rao, I.G. Zurbenko, and P.S. Porter, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, Vol. 81, No. 9, pp 2083-2106, September 2000
"The airshed for ozone and fine particle pollution in the eastern United States" K. Civerolo, H. Mao, and S.T. Rao, Pure and Applied Geophysics, 2000, In Press
"Summertime characteristics of the atmospheric boundary layer and relationships to ozone levels in the eastern United States" S.T. Rao, K. Zhang, M. Ku, S. Berman, and H. Mao, Pure and Applied Geophysics, 2000, In Press
"Ozone air quality over North America: Part I - A review of reported trends" G.T. Wolff, A.M. Dunker, P.S. Porter, S.T. Rao, and I.G. Zurbenko, Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2000, In Press
"Ozone air quality over North America: Part II - An analysis trend detection and attribution techniques" P.S. Porter, S.T. Rao, I.G. Zurbenko, A.M. Dunker, and G.T. Wolff, Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2000, In Press
"A comparison of measured and simulated ozone concentrations in rural areas of the eastern United States during the summer of 1995" G. Sistla, K. Civerolo, W. Hao, and S.T. Rao, Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2000, In Press
"Uncertainties in episodic ozone modeling stemming from uncertainties in the meteorological fields" J. Biswas and S.T. Rao, Journal of Applied Meteorology, 2000, In Press