Wavelet Coherence Analysis of PM10 Variability Due to Changes in Meteorological Factors in the Continental Climate

The high-altitude region in northeastern Türkiye is known as the Erzurum–Kars Plateau. The Ardahan, Erzurum, and Kars provinces are its most important settlements, established at an altitude of approximately 1800 m on the plateau. In this region, where the continental climate prevails, the relationships between the PM10 concentration levels recorded between 2010 and 2022 and meteorological variables were investigated. During the study, the average daily PM10 levels for Ardahan, Erzurum, and Kars in the winter seasons were 73.3, 76.7, and 72.2 µg/m3 respectively. In the same period, the daily average temperature (and humidity) was determined as −6.9 °C (75.0%), −7.1 °C (82.9%), and −6.3 °C (75.7%), respectively, and the average wind speed was determined as 0.9 m/s, 2.2 m/s, and 1.7 m/s, respectively. For these provinces, the highest correlation coefficients between PM10 and temperature (and wind speed) in winter were calculated as −0.47 (−0.36), −0.49 (−0.60), and −0.52 (−0.54), respectively, while the correlation coefficients between PM10 and temperature (and humidity) in summer were calculated as 0.32 (−0.32), 0.39 (−0.35), and 0.55 (−0.48), respectively. In the analysis performed using the wavelet coherence approach, it was possible to determine the relationships between PM10 and meteorological parameters not only in annual cycles, but also in seasonal and even monthly cycles.