(Semi)volatile Organic Compounds and Microbiological Entities in Snow during OASIS Barrow 2009

Snow has recently been shown to be an active medium for the deposition of (semi-)volatile (bio)organic compounds. We collected surface snow samples during the OASIS Barrow campaign in March 2009 for analysis of semi-volatile organic compounds using solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection (SPME-GC/MS). Additional grab samples were taken for analysis of non-methane hydrocarbons in air. Moreover we analyzed for microbial species in air and snow. Identifed organic compounds covered a wide range of functionalities and molecular weights, including oxygenated reactive speces such as aldehydes (e.g., hexanal to decanal), alcohols (e.g., hexanol, octanol) and aromatic species (e.g., methyl- and ethylbenzenes). Quantification data for selected aromatic species are presented with concentrations in the upper ng/L range. We will present our preliminary data on microbiological species, and will discuss the potential implications of the results for organic snow chemistry.