ALBERT

Beschreibung: During the INTEX-B (Intercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment)/MILAGRO (Megacities Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations) experiments in March 2006 and the associated IONS-06 (INTEX Ozonesonde Network Study; http://croc.gsfc.nasa.gov/intexb/ions06.html), regular ozonesonde launches were made over 15 North American sites. The soundings were strategically positioned to study inter-regional flows and meteorological interactions with a mixture of tropospheric O3 sources: local pollution; O3 associated with convection and lightning; stratosphere-troposphere exchange. The variability of tropospheric O3 over the Mexico City Basin (MCB; 19 N, 99 W) and Houston (30 N, 95 W) is reported here. MCB and Houston profiles displayed a double tropopause in most soundings and a subtropical tropopause layer with frequent wave disturbances, identified through O3 laminae as gravity-wave induced. Ozonesondes launched over both cities in August and September~2006 (IONS-06, Phase 3) displayed a thicker tropospheric column O3 (~7 DU or 15–20%) than in March 2006; nearly all of the increase was in the free troposphere. In spring and summer, O3 laminar structure manifested mixed influences from the stratosphere, convective redistribution of O3 and precursors, and O3 from lightning NO. Stratospheric O3 origins were present in 39% (MCB) and 60% (Houston) of the summer sondes. Comparison of summer 2006 O3 structure with summer 2004 sondes (IONS-04) over Houston showed 7% less tropospheric O3 in 2006. This may reflect a sampling contrast, August to mid-September 2006 instead of July–mid August 2004.

Beschreibung: From 13 July–9 August 2007, 25 ozonesondes were launched from Las Tablas, Panama as part of the Tropical Composition, Cloud, and Climate Coupling (TC4) mission. On 5 August, a strong convective cell formed in the Gulf of Panama. World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) data indicated 563 flashes (09:00–17:00 UTC) in the Gulf. NO2 data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) show enhancements, suggesting lightning production of NOx. At 15:05 UTC, an ozonesonde ascended into the southern edge of the now dissipating convective cell as it moved west across the Azuero Peninsula. The balloon oscillated from 2.5–5.1 km five times (15:12–17:00 UTC), providing a unique examination of ozone (O3) photochemistry on the edge of a convective cell. Ozone increased at a rate of ~1.6–4.6 ppbv/hr between the first and last ascent, resulting cell wide in an increase of ~(2.1–2.5) × 106 moles of O3. This estimate agrees to within a factor of two of our estimates of photochemical lightning O3 production from the WWLLN flashes, from the radar-inferred lightning flash data, and from the OMI NO2 data (~1.2, ~1.0, and ~1.7 × 106 moles, respectively), though all estimates have large uncertainties. Examination of DC-8 in situ and lidar O3 data gathered around the Gulf that day suggests 70–97% of the O3 change occurred in 2.5–5.1 km layer. A photochemical box model initialized with nearby TC4 aircraft trace gas data suggests these O3 production rates are possible with our present understanding of photochemistry.

Beschreibung: During the INTEX-B (Intercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment)/ MILAGRO (Megacities Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations) experiments in March 2006 and the associated IONS-06 (INTEX Ozonesonde Network Study; http://croc.gsfc.nasa.gov/intexb/ions06.html), regular ozonesonde launches were made over 15 North American sites. The soundings were strategically positioned to study inter-regional flows and meteorological interactions with a mixture of tropospheric O3 sources: local pollution; O3 associated with convection and lightning; stratosphere-troposphere exchange. The variability of tropospheric O3 over the Mexico City Basin (MCB; 19° N, 99° W) and Houston (30° N, 95° W) is reported here. MCB and Houston profiles displayed a double tropopause in most soundings and a subtropical tropopause layer with frequent wave disturbances, identified through O3 laminae as gravity-wave induced. Ozonesondes launched over both cities in August and September 2006 (IONS-06, Phase 3) displayed a thicker tropospheric column O3 (~7 DU or 15–20%) than in March 2006; nearly all of the increase was in the free troposphere. In spring and summer, O3 laminar structure manifested mixed influences from the stratosphere, convective redistribution of O3 and precursors, and O3 from lightning NO. Stratospheric O3 origins were present in 39% (MCB) and 60% (Houston) of the summer sondes. Comparison of summer 2006 O3 structure with summer 2004 sondes (IONS-04) over Houston showed 7% less tropospheric O3 in 2006. This may reflect a sampling contrast, August to mid-September 2006 instead of July-mid August 2004.

Beschreibung: We apply the NASA Goddard Trajectory Model to data from a series of ozonesondes to derive ozone loss rates in the lower stratosphere for the AASE-2/EASOE mission (January-March 1992) and for the SOLVE/THESEO 2000 mission (January-March 2000) in an approach similar to Match. Ozone loss rates are computed by comparing the ozone concentrations provided by ozonesondes launched at the beginning and end of the trajectories connecting the launches. We investigate the sensitivity of the Match results to the various parameters used to reject potential matches in the original Match technique. While these filters effectively eliminate from consideration 80% of the matched sonde pairs and 〉99% of matched observations in our study, we conclude that only a filter based on potential vorticity changes along the calculated back trajectories seems warranted. Our study also demonstrates that the ozone loss rates estimated in Match can vary by up to a factor of two depending upon the precise trajectory paths calculated for each trajectory. As a result, the statistical uncertainties published with previous Match results might need to be augmented by an additional systematic error. The sensitivity to the trajectory path is particularly pronounced in the month of January, for which the largest ozone loss rate discrepancies between photochemical models and Match are found. For most of the two study periods, our ozone loss rates agree with those previously published. Notable exceptions are found for January 1992 at 475K and late February/early March 2000 at 450K, both periods during which we generally find smaller loss rates than the previous Match studies. Integrated ozone loss rates estimated by Match in both of those years compare well with those found in numerous other studies and in a potential vorticity/potential temperature approach shown previously and in this paper. Finally, we suggest an alternate approach to Match using trajectory mapping. This approach uses information from all matched observations without filtering and uses a two-parameter fit to the data to produce robust ozone loss rate estimates. As compared to loss rates from our version of Match, the trajectory mapping approach produces generally smaller loss rates, frequently not statistically significantly different from zero, calling into question the efficacy of the Match approach.

Beschreibung: In submitting data to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) World Ozone and Ultraviolet Data Center (WOUDC), numerous ozonesonde stations include a correction factor (CF) that multiplies ozone concentration profile data so that the columns computed agree with column measurements from co-located ground-based and/or overpassing satellite instruments. We evaluate this practice through an examination of data from four Japanese ozonesonde stations: Kagoshima, Naha, Sapporo, and Tsukuba. While agreement between the sonde columns and Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) or Ozone Mapping Instrument (OMI) is improved by use of the CF, agreement between the sonde ozone concentrations reported near the surface and data from surface monitors near the launch sites is negatively impacted. In addition, we find the agreement between the mean sonde columns without the CF and the ground-based Dobson instrument columns is improved by ~1.5 % by using the McPeters et al. (1997) balloon burst climatology rather than the constant mixing ratio assumption (that has been used for the data in the WOUDC archive) for the above burst height column estimate. Limited comparisons of coincident ozonesonde profiles from Hokkaido University with those in the WOUDC database suggest that while the application of the CFs in the stratosphere improves agreement, it negatively impacts the agreement in the troposphere. Finally and importantly, unexplained trends and changing trends in the CFs appear over the last 20 years. The overall trend in the reported CFs for the four Japanese ozonesonde stations from 1990–2010 is (−0.264 ± 0.036) × 10−2 yr−1; but from 1993–1999 the trend is (−2.18 ± 0.14) × 10−2 yr−1 and from 1999–2009 is (1.089 ± 0.075) × 10−2 yr−1, resulting in a statistically significant difference in CF trends between these two periods of (3.26 ± 0.16) × 10−2 yr−1. Repeating the analysis using CFs derived from columns computed using the balloon-burst climatology, the trends are somewhat reduced, but remain statistically significant. Given our analysis, we recommend the following: (1) use of the balloon burst climatology is preferred to a constant mixing ratio assumption for determining total column ozone with sonde data; (2) if CFs are applied, their application should probably be restricted to altitudes above the tropopause; (3) only sondes that reach at least 32 km (10.5 hPa) before bursting should be used in data validation and/or ozone trend studies if the constant mixing ratio assumption is used to calculate the above burst column (as is the case for much of the data in the WOUDC archive). Using the balloon burst climatology, sondes that burst above 29 km (~16 hPa), and perhaps lower, can be used; and (4) all ozone trend studies employing Japanese sonde data should be revisited after a careful examination of the impact of the CF on the calculated ozone trends.

Beschreibung: In submitting data to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) World Ozone and Ultraviolet Data Center (WOUDC), numerous ozonesonde stations include a correction factor (CF) that multiplies ozone concentration profile data so that the columns computed agree with column measurements from co-located ground-based and/or overpassing satellite instruments. We evaluate this practice through an examination of data from 4 Japanese ozonesonde stations: Kagoshima, Naha, Sapporo, and Tsukuba. While agreement between the sonde columns and Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) or Ozone Mapping Instrument (OMI) is improved by use of the CF, agreement between the sonde ozone concentrations reported near the surface and data from surface monitors near the launch sites is negatively impacted. In addition, the agreement between the mean sonde columns without the CF and the ground-based Dobson instrument columns is improved by ~1.5% by using the McPeters et al. (1997) balloon burst climatology rather than the constant mixing ratio assumption for the above burst height column estimate. Limited comparisons of coincident ozonesonde profiles from Hokkaido University with those in the WOUDC database suggest that while the application of the CFs in the stratosphere improves agreement, it negatively impacts the agreement in the troposphere. Finally, unexplained trends and changing trends in the CFs appear over the last 20 yr. The overall trend in the CFs for the four Japanese ozonesonde stations from 1990–2010 is (−0.157 ± 0.032) × 10−2 yr−1; but from 1993–1999 the trend is (−2.21 ± 0.14) × 10−2 yr−1 and from 1999–2009 is (1.180 ± 0.059) × 10−2 yr−1, resulting in a statistically significant difference in CF trends between these two periods of (3.39 ± 0.15) × 10−2 yr−1. Given our analysis, we recommend the following: (1) use of the balloon burst climatology is preferred to a constant mixing ratio assumption for determining total column ozone with sonde data; (2) if CFs are applied, their application should probably be restricted to altitudes above the tropopause; (3) only sondes that reach at least 32 km (10.5 hPa) before bursting should be used in data validation and/or ozone trend studies; and (4) all ozone trend studies employing Japanese sonde data should be revisited after a careful examination of the impact of the CF on the calculated ozone trends.

Beschreibung: We apply the NASA Goddard Trajectory Model with a series of ozonesondes to derive ozone loss rates in the lower stratosphere for the AASE-2/EASOE mission (January–March 1992) and for the SOLVE/THESEO 2000 mission (January–March 2000) in an approach similar to Match. Ozone loss rates are computed by comparing the ozone concentrations provided by ozonesondes launched at the beginning and end of the trajectories connecting the launches. We investigate the sensitivity of the Match results to the various parameters used to reject potential matches in the original Match technique. While these filters effectively eliminate from consideration ≥80% of the matched sonde pairs and 〉99% of matched observations, we conclude that only a filter based on potential vorticity changes along the calculated back trajectories seems warranted. Our study also demonstrates that the ozone loss rates estimated in Match can vary by up to a factor of two depending upon the precise trajectory paths calculated for each trajectory. As a result, the statistical uncertainties published with previous Match results might need to be augmented by an additional systematic error. The sensitivity to the trajectory path is particularly pronounced in the month of January, for which the largest ozone loss rate discrepancies between photochemical models and Match are found. For most of the two study periods, our ozone loss rates agree with those previously published. Notable exceptions are found for January 1992 at 475 K and late February/early March 2000 at 450 K, both periods during which we find less loss than the previous Match studies. Integrated ozone loss rates estimated by Match in both of those years compare well with those found in numerous other studies and in a potential vorticity/potential temperature approach shown previously and in this paper. Finally, we suggest an alternate approach to Match using trajectory mapping. This approach uses information from all matched observations without filtering to produce robust ozone loss rate estimates.

Beschreibung: Several previous studies highlight pressure (or equivalently, pressure altitude) discrepancies between the radiosonde pressure sensor and that derived from a GPS flown with the radiosonde. The offsets vary during the ascent both in absolute and percent pressure differences. To investigate this problem further, a total of 731 radiosonde/ozonesonde launches from the Southern Hemisphere subtropics to northern mid-latitudes are considered, with launches between 2005 and 2013 from both longer term and campaign-based intensive stations. Five series of radiosondes from two manufacturers (International Met Systems: iMet, iMet-P, iMet-S, and Vaisala: RS80-15N and RS92-SGP) are analyzed to determine the magnitude of the pressure offset. Additionally, electrochemical concentration cell (ECC) ozonesondes from three manufacturers (Science Pump Corporation; SPC and ENSCI/Droplet Measurement Technologies; DMT) are analyzed to quantify the effects these offsets have on the calculation of ECC ozone (O3) mixing ratio profiles (O3MR) from the ozonesonde-measured partial pressure. Approximately half of all offsets are 〉 ±0.6 hPa in the free troposphere, with nearly a third 〉 ±1.0 hPa at 26 km, where the 1.0 hPa error represents ~ 5% of the total atmospheric pressure. Pressure offsets have negligible effects on O3MR below 20 km (96% of launches lie within ±5% O3MR error at 20 km). Ozone mixing ratio errors above 10 hPa (~ 30 km), can approach greater than ±10% (〉 25% of launches that reach 30 km exceed this threshold). These errors cause disagreement between the integrated ozonesonde-only column O3 from the GPS and radiosonde pressure profile by an average of +6.5 DU. Comparisons of total column O3 between the GPS and radiosonde pressure profiles yield average differences of +1.1 DU when the O3 is integrated to burst with addition of the McPeters and Labow (2012) above-burst O3 column climatology. Total column differences are reduced to an average of −0.5 DU when the O3 profile is integrated to 10 hPa with subsequent addition of the O3 climatology above 10 hPa. The RS92 radiosondes are superior in performance compared to other radiosondes, with average 26 km errors of −0.12 hPa or +0.61% O3MR error. iMet-P radiosondes had average 26 km errors of −1.95 hPa or +8.75 % O3MR error. Based on our analysis, we suggest that ozonesondes always be coupled with a GPS-enabled radiosonde and that pressure-dependent variables, such as O3MR, be recalculated/reprocessed using the GPS-measured altitude, especially when 26 km pressure offsets exceed ±1.0 hPa/±5%.

Beschreibung: From 13 July–9 August 2007, 25 ozonesondes were launched from Las Tablas, Panama as part of the Tropical Composition, Cloud, and Climate Coupling (TC4) mission. On 5 August, a strong convective cell formed in the Gulf of Panama. World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) data indicated 563 flashes (09:00–17:00 UTC) in the Gulf. NO2 data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) show enhancements, suggesting lightning production of NOx. At 15:05 UTC, an ozonesonde ascended into the southern edge of the now dissipating convective cell as it moved west across the Azuero Peninsula. The balloon oscillated from 2.5–5.1 km five times (15:12–17:00 UTC), providing a unique examination of ozone (O3) photochemistry on the edge of a convective cell. Ozone increased at a rate of ~1.6–4.6 ppbv/hr between the first and last ascent, resulting cell wide in an increase of ~(2.1–2.5)×106 moles of O3. This estimate agrees to within a factor of two of our estimates of photochemical lightning O3 production from the WWLLN flashes, from the radar-inferred lightning flash data, and from the OMI NO2 data (~1.2, ~1.0, and~1.7×106 moles respectively), though all estimates have large uncertainties. Examination of DC-8 in situ and lidar O3 data gathered around the Gulf that day suggests 70–97% of the O3 change occurred in 2.5–5.1 km layer. A photochemical box model initialized with nearby TC4 aircraft trace gas data suggests these O3 production rates are possible with our present understanding of photochemistry.

Beschreibung: Several previous studies highlight pressure (or equivalently, pressure altitude) discrepancies between the radiosonde pressure sensor and that derived from a GPS flown with the radiosonde. The offsets vary during the ascent both in absolute and percent pressure differences. To investigate this, a total of 501 radiosonde/ozonesonde launches from the Southern Hemisphere subtropics to northern mid-latitudes are considered, with launches between 2006–2013 from both historical and campaign-based intensive stations. Three types of electrochemical concentration cell (ECC) ozonesonde manufacturers (Science Pump Corporation; SPC and ENSCI/Droplet Measurement Technologies; DMT) and five series of radiosondes from two manufacturers (International Met Systems: iMet, iMet-P, iMet-S, and Vaisala: RS80 and RS92) are analyzed to determine the magnitude of the pressure offset and the effects these offsets have on the calculation of ECC ozone (O3) mixing ratio profiles (O3MR) from the ozonesonde-measured partial pressure. Approximately half of all offsets are 〉 ±0.7 hPa in the free troposphere, with nearly a quarter 〉 ±1.0 hPa at 26 km, where the 1.0 hPa error represents ~5% of the total atmospheric pressure. Pressure offsets have negligible effects on O3MR below 20 km (98% of launches lie within ±5% O3MR error at 20 km). Ozone mixing ratio errors in the 7–15 hPa layer (29–32 km), a region critical for detection of long-term O3 trends, can approach greater than ±10% (〉25% of launches that reach 30 km exceed this threshold). Comparisons of total column O3 yield average differences of +1.6 DU (−1.1 to +4.9 DU 10th to 90th percentiles) when the O3 is integrated to burst with addition of the McPeters and Labow (2012) above-burst O3 column climatology. Total column differences are reduced to an average of +0.1 DU (−1.1 to +2.2 DU) when the O3 profile is integrated to 10 hPa with subsequent addition of the O3 climatology above 10 hPa. The RS92 radiosondes are clearly distinguishable in performance from other radiosondes, with average 26 km errors of +0.32 hPa (−0.09 to +0.54 hPa 10th to 90th percentiles) or −1.31% (−2.19 to +0.37%) O3MR error. Conversely, iMet-P radiosondes had average 26 km errors of −1.49 hPa (−2.33 to −0.82 hPa) or +6.71% (+3.61 to +11.0%) O3MR error. Based on our analysis, we suggest that ozonesondes always be coupled with a GPS-enabled radiosonde and that pressure-dependent variables, such as O3MR, be recalculated/reprocessed using the GPS-measured altitude, particularly when 26 km pressure offsets exceed ±1.0 hPa/±5%.