The effects of meteorology and air mass history on ozone depletion events in the Arctic Ocean boundary layer
Abstract
The spring time episodic depletion of boundary layer ozone in polar regions has been an area of active research for more than 30 years. It has long been hypothesized that these events originate from over the frozen Arctic Ocean, which provides the necessary atmospheric conditions and reactive halogen species (primarily bromine radicals) necessary for the underlying chemistry. In this study, we utilize data from deployments of buoy-based observatories (O-Buoys) across the Arctic Ocean to investigate the relationship between meteorology, air mass history as it relates to satellite-determined snow depth and sea ice imagery, and ambient ozone mole fractions. Time periods analyzed range from March through June in 2010-2012, and 2014-2016 in various regions of the Arctic Ocean. These long-term in situ measurements can provide unique insights into the effects local surface type conditions and meteorology have on the timing, frequency, and duration of ozone depletion, and the recovery from those events. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that the Arctic Ocean is widely O3-depleted in the Arctic springtime, and that ozone recoveries are caused by vertical mixing from highly intermittent turbulent conditions. We found a stronger statistical relationship between ozone variability and meteorological variables (e.g., R2 = 0.63 from one Beaufort Sea observation site), compared with that between ozone and air mass history over different sea ice surfaces, such as first year ice and multi-year ice (e.g., R2 = 0.33 from the same Beaufort Sea observation site).
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016AGUFM.C13A0803H
- Keywords:
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- 0305 Aerosols and particles;
- ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION AND STRUCTUREDE: 0365 Troposphere: composition and chemistry;
- ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION AND STRUCTUREDE: 0736 Snow;
- CRYOSPHEREDE: 0750 Sea ice;
- CRYOSPHERE