7 Be concentration in the near-surface layer of the air in Bialystok (north-eastern Poland) in the years 1992–2010

Abstract Weekly measurements of air 7 Be concentrations (n = 769) were performed in the years 1992–2010 in Bialystok (north-eastern Poland) using gamma spectrometry. The arithmetic mean (AM) concentration of 7 Be was 2.51 mBq m −3 , and the median (M) was 2.24 mBq m −3 (range 0.47–7.81 mBq m −3 ). The observed 7 Be concentrations were within the range of levels recorded in Europe. Typical seasonal variability was observed. Concentrations of 7 Be in the warm season (May, June, July) were almost twice as high as those in the cold season (November, December, January). A correlation was found between weekly 7 Be concentrations and mean weekly values of relative humidity, temperature, and wind speed throughout the observation period. Pearson's correlation coefficients were −0.63, p  The correlation coefficient between sunspot number and mean annual 7 Be concentrations in the air in the years 1992–2010 was −0.609.