Chlorine Monoxide in the Antarctic Spring Stratosphere.

A series of observations of stratospheric chlorine monoxide (ClO) were carried out during the austral springs of 1986 and 1987 in McMurdo Station, Antarctica, as part of two experimental campaigns sent to investigate the seasonal decrease in ozone over the antarctic continent (the ozone "hole"). Measurements of the vertical distribution of ClO were obtained by high resolution ground-based emission spectroscopy at 278 GHz, using the Stony Brook mm-wave receiver. They show the presence of an anomalous layer of lower stratospheric ClO which is not observed at other latitudes. This anomalous layer is centered at ~20 km altitude and exhibits a pronounced diurnal variation, reaching a maximum at midday and disappearing at night. During the period of Sep. 20-24, 1987, the lower-stratospheric ClO had a maximum volume mixing ratio of 1.8_sp{+0cdot5}{ -0cdot9} ppbv. A normal ClO layer centered at ~36 km was also observed, with concentrations and diurnal behavior similar to those seen in tropical latitudes. These findings are evidence of anomalous chlorine chemistry taking place in the lower stratosphere during the antarctic spring, and indicate that increasing anthropogenic chlorine is a prime causative agent in the formation of the ozone hole.