Input of atmospheric trace elements and mineral matter to the Yellow Sea during the spring of a low‐dust year

Aerosol particle samples collected in Beijing, China, and Mallipo, South Korea, were analyzed by instrumental neutron activation to (1) determine the atmospheric concentrations of trace elements over the Yellow Sea and (2) to estimate the atmospheric deposition of selected trace elements to this region. The atmospheric concentrations of trace elements decreased from April to May at these two sampling sites, but the percentages of the concentration decreases varied among elements. A decrease in the concentrations of mineral aerosol with distance was modeled using an exponential decay pattern. The estimated atmospheric deposition of mineral aerosol to the Yellow Sea, based on the representative crustal elements, was 9 to 76 g m−2 yr−1. This flux is comparable to that for any coastal region studied to date, and it can account for 20–70% of the total input of mineral material to the Yellow Sea. The atmospheric deposition of pollutant metals to the Yellow Sea apparently is comparable to the atmospheric fluxes to several European seas and to coastal sites in North America.