『Abstract
　This study measured the major element concentrations and compositions of atmospheric dust aerosol samples collected weekly for nearly 2 years at Mt. Muztagata, a remote and high-elevation site (38゜17'N, 75゜01'E, 4,430 m) in the Eastern Pamirs. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) results show that on the weekly timescale, air at Muztagata contained average element Al concentrations of 842 ng m^-3 between June 2004 and December 2005, and 509 ng m^-3 between June 2005 and April 2006. The dust load over the Eastern Pamirs appears to be far lower (by more than an order of magnitude) than those in northern China. The Muztagata dust aerosols show Ca/Al ratios (〜0.7) and Fe/Al ratios (〜0.7) that differ from that in northern China. The general homogeneity exists in the major element compositions, except Ca/Al ratios which show minor but clear seasonal variations. Element ratios vary with aerosol concentration. Results indicate that concentrations and compositions of Asian dust change significantly between different emission regions, and confirm that major element ratios can be used to efficiently characterize the dust aerosols composition at different sites in northern China.

Keywords: Asia dust; Pamirs; Concentration; Composition; Seasonal variation』

Introduction
Materials and methods
Results and discussion
　Average aerosol concentrations
　Seasonal variation of aerosol concentrations
　Element ratios for the Muztagata dust aerosols
　Seasonal variation of element ratios
　Dust transport pathways to Muztagata
　Regional differences in major dust-derived element compositions
Conclusions
Acknowledgments
References