Abstract
The Atmospheric Science and Chemistry mEasurement NeTwork (ASCENT) is a new long-term, ground-based high time-resolution monitoring network for characterizing aerosol chemical composition and physical properties. The goal of the network is to gain a more complete understanding of the sources, chemistry, dynamics, and chemical and physical properties of aerosols to accurately assess and predict their impacts on climate, human health, visibility, and ecosystems in a changing environment. The 12 sites, located in urban and rural locations in the United States, are equipped with a suite of advanced aerosol instrumentation for real-time measurements of fine aerosol chemical composition and properties: Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitor (ACSM, organics, sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, chloride), Xact (trace metals), Aethalometer (black carbon), and Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS, aerosol number size distribution and concentration).