In situ measurements constraining the role of sulphate aerosols in mid-latitude ozone depletion

Fahey, D. W.; Kawa, S. R.; Woodbridge, E. L.; Tin, Padetha; Wilson, J. C.; Jonsson, Haflidi H.; Dye, J. E.; Baumgardner, Darrel; Borrmann, Stephan; Toohey, D. W.; Avallone, L. M.; Proffitt, M. H.; Margitan, J. J.; Loewenstein, M.; Podolske, James R.; Salawitch, R. J.; Wofsy, Steven C.; Ko, Malcolm K. W.; Anderson, Donald E.; Schoeber, M. R.; Chan, K. R.

doi:10.1038/363509a0

Cited by 281 publications

(186 citation statements)

References 41 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

178

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Stratospheric aerosol hosts heterogeneous reactions that occur in proportion to the available aerosol surface area and impact the abundance of ozone and other species (Fahey et al, 1993;Wilson et al, 1993;Wennberg et al, 1994). Aerosol also scatters some incoming solar radiation back into space.…”

Section: Importance Of Stratospheric Aerosolmentioning

confidence: 99%

Steady-state aerosol distributions in the extra-tropical, lower stratosphere and the processes that maintain them

et al. 2008

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Measurements of aerosol, N 2 O and OCS made in the Northern Hemisphere below 21 km altitude following the eruption of Pinatubo are presented and analyzed. After September 1999, the oxidation of OCS and sedimentation of particles in the extra-tropical overworld north of 45 N are found to maintain the aerosol in a steady state. This analysis empirically links precursor gas to aerosol abundance throughout this region. These processes are tracked with ageof-air which offers advantages over tracking as a function of latitude and altitude. In the extra-tropical, lowermost stratosphere, normalized volume distributions appear constant in time after the fall of 1999. Exchange with the troposphere is important in understanding aerosol evolution there. Size distributions of volcanically perturbed aerosol are included to distinguish between volcanic and non-volcanic conditions. This analysis suggests that model failures to correctly predict OCS and aerosol properties below 20 km in the Northern Hemisphere extra tropics result from inadequate descriptions of atmospheric circulation.

show abstract

Section: Importance Of Stratospheric Aerosolmentioning

confidence: 99%

Steady-state aerosol distributions in the extra-tropical, lower stratosphere and the processes that maintain them

et al. 2008

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These additional stratospheric particles may play an important role in the chemical budget of the middle atmosphere, producing catastrophic ozone losses and may also add a significant radiative forcing on global climate in a timeframe of a few years . The 1991/92 mid-latitude observations collected by Fahey et al (1993) have clearly shown the effect of the additional Pinatubo aerosols on stratospheric chemistry. A time-dependent model exercise carried out for the WMO (1999) ozone assessment has shown that the photochemical perturbation produced by the Pinatubo aerosols during 1992/93 can roughly explain the magnitude of ozone depletion observed by the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) (McPeters et al, 1996), although some timedependent features of the ozone depletion are not correctly captured.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Short-term climatic impact of the 1991 volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo and effects on atmospheric tracers

Pitari

Mancini

2002

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Large explosive volcanic eruptions are capable of injecting considerable amounts of particles and sulphur gases (mostly sulphur dioxide) above the tropopause, causing increases in the stratospheric aerosol optical depth that may be even larger than one order of magnitude. The efolding particle lifetime in the stratosphere is much longer than in the troposphere (one year versus a few days) so that climatic perturbations in a timeframe of a few years are produced after major volcanic eruptions. A climate-chemistry coupled model is used here to study the dynamical effects of the radiative forcing due to stratospheric aerosols formed after the June, 1991 cataclysmic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines. It is shown that the dynamical perturbation is twofold: (a) the stratospheric mean meridional circulation is affected by local aerosol radiative heating (mostly located in the tropical lower stratosphere); (b) the planetary wave propagation in the mid-to high-latitude lower stratosphere is altered as a consequence of decreasing atmospheric stability due to the climatic perturbation. Dynamical results of the climate model are compared with available observations; a discussion is made regarding the similarities with the dynamical regime of the easterly phase of the equatorial quasi-biennial oscillation. Major findings of this study are: (a) radiatively forced changes in the stratospheric circulation during the first two years after the eruption may, to a large extent, explain the observed trend decline of long-lived greenhouse gases (CH 4 and N 2 O, in particular); (b) the dynamical perturbation helps explain why simple photochemical studies of the ozone trends during 1991-1993 generally fail in reproducing the satellite observed feature consisting of a 2% additional global ozone depletion during 1993 with respect to 1992. In both cases we conclude that an increase in the mid-to high-latitude downward flux at the tropopause is the key factor for explaining the behaviour of these atmospheric tracers during 1991/92.

show abstract

“…The direct chemical effect was a result of the aerosol surface acting as sites for heterogeneous chemical reactions (Solomon, 1999). This locked NO x into inactive HNO 3 , liberating chlorine from reservoirs to active species, enabling the catalytic destruction of ozone (Fahey et al, 1993;Solomon, 1999;Robock, 2000). There was also an indirect effect as a result of the aerosol altering the temperature and dynamics of the stratosphere by absorbing radiation, heating the lower stratosphere.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reassessment of causes of ozone column variability following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo using a nudged CCM

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The eruption of Mount Pinatubo produced the largest loading of stratospheric sulphate aerosol in the twentieth century. This heated the tropical lower stratosphere, affecting stratospheric circulation, and provided enhanced surface area for heterogeneous chemistry. These factors combined to produce record low values of "global" total ozone column. Though well studied, there remains some uncertainty about the attribution of this low ozone, with contributions from both chemical and dynamical effects. We take a complementary approach to previous studies, nudging the potential temperature and horizontal winds in the new UKCA chemistry climate model to reproduce the atmospheric response and assess the impact on global total ozone. We then combine model runs and observations to distinguish between chemical and dynamical effects. To estimate the effects of increased heterogeneous chemistry on ozone we compare runs with volcanically enhanced and background surface aerosol density. The modelled depletion of global ozone peaks at about 7 DU in early 1993, in good agreement with values obtained from observations. We subtract the modelled aerosol induced ozone loss from the observed ozone record and attribute the remaining variability to 'dynamical' effects. The remaining variability is dominated by the QBO. We also examine tropical and mid-latitude ozone, diagnosing contributions from El Niño in the tropics and identifying dynamically driven low ozone in northern mid-latitudes, which we interpret as possible evidence of changes in the QBO. We conclude that, on a global scale, the record lows of extra-polar ozone are produced by the increased heterogeneous chemistry, although there is evidence for dynamics produced low ozone in certain regions, including northern mid-latitudes.Correspondence to: P. Telford

show abstract

In situ measurements constraining the role of sulphate aerosols in mid-latitude ozone depletion

Cited by 281 publications

References 41 publications

Steady-state aerosol distributions in the extra-tropical, lower stratosphere and the processes that maintain them

Steady-state aerosol distributions in the extra-tropical, lower stratosphere and the processes that maintain them

Short-term climatic impact of the 1991 volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo and effects on atmospheric tracers

Reassessment of causes of ozone column variability following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo using a nudged CCM

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About