Urban carbon dioxide cycles within the Salt Lake Valley: A multiple-box model validated by observations

The model was forced by observed winds, sounding-derived mixing depths, an anthropogenic CO₂ emissions inventory, and net biological flux estimates based on temperature, solar radiation, and ecosystem type.

The model was validated using hourly CO₂ mole fractions measured at five sites in the urban Salt Lake Valley (uSLV) area for 2005 - 2009 (spatial average of observations denoted by Cobs). The model accounted for 53% of Cobs on an hourly basis, and accounted for 90 - 94% of the mean diel cycle of Cobs depending on season. The multiple-box model results indicated that CO₂ change rates within the uSLV mean diel cycles were largely the result of imbalances between anthropogenic processes adding CO₂ and meteorological processes removing or diluting CO₂.