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Schroeder JR, Crawford JH, Fried A, Walega J, Weinheimer A, Wisthaler A, Müller M, Mikoviny T, Chen G, Shook M, Blake DR, Diskin G, Estes M, Thompson AM, Lefer BL, Long R, Mattson E. Formaldehyde column density measurements as a suitable pathway to estimate near-surface ozone tendencies from space. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2016; 121:13088-13112. [PMID: 32812915 PMCID: PMC7430524 DOI: 10.1002/2016jd025419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
In support of future satellite missions that aim to address the current shortcomings in measuring air quality from space, NASA's Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality (DISCOVER-AQ) field campaign was designed to enable exploration of relationships between column measurements of trace species relevant to air quality at high spatial and temporal resolution. In the DISCOVER-AQ data set, a modest correlation (r 2 = 0.45) between ozone (O3) and formaldehyde (CH2O) column densities was observed. Further analysis revealed regional variability in the O3-CH2O relationship, with Maryland having a strong relationship when data were viewed temporally and Houston having a strong relationship when data were viewed spatially. These differences in regional behavior are attributed to differences in volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. In Maryland, biogenic VOCs were responsible for ~28% of CH2O formation within the boundary layer column, causing CH2O to, in general, increase monotonically throughout the day. In Houston, persistent anthropogenic emissions dominated the local hydrocarbon environment, and no discernable diurnal trend in CH2O was observed. Box model simulations suggested that ambient CH2O mixing ratios have a weak diurnal trend (±20% throughout the day) due to photochemical effects, and that larger diurnal trends are associated with changes in hydrocarbon precursors. Finally, mathematical relationships were developed from first principles and were able to replicate the different behaviors seen in Maryland and Houston. While studies would be necessary to validate these results and determine the regional applicability of the O3-CH2O relationship, the results presented here provide compelling insight into the ability of future satellite missions to aid in monitoring near-surface air quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason R Schroeder
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, USA
- NASA Postdoctoral Program, NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, USA
| | | | - Alan Fried
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - James Walega
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | | | - Armin Wisthaler
- Institute of Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Department of Chemistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Markus Müller
- Institute of Ion Physics and Applied Physics, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Tomas Mikoviny
- Department of Chemistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Gao Chen
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, USA
| | - Michael Shook
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, USA
| | - Donald R Blake
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Glenn Diskin
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, USA
| | - Mark Estes
- Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Austin, Texas, USA
| | - Anne M Thompson
- Department of Meteorology, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA
| | - Barry L Lefer
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Science, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA
- Now at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Russell Long
- National Exposure Research Laboratory, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
| | - Eric Mattson
- Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver, Colorado, USA
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Ott LE, Duncan BN, Thompson AM, Diskin G, Fasnacht Z, Langford AO, Lin M, Molod AM, Nielsen JE, Pusede SE, Wargan K, Weinheimer AJ, Yoshida Y. Frequency and Impact of Summertime Stratospheric Intrusions over Maryland during DISCOVER-AQ (2011): New Evidence from NASA's GEOS-5 Simulations. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2016; Volume 121:3687-3706. [PMID: 32021738 PMCID: PMC6999667 DOI: 10.1002/2015jd024052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Aircraft observations and ozonesonde profiles collected on July 14 and 27, 2011, during the Maryland month-long DISCOVER-AQ campaign, indicate the presence of stratospheric air just above the planetary boundary layer (PBL). This raises the question of whether summer stratospheric intrusions (SIs) elevate surface ozone levels and to what degree they influence background ozone levels and contribute to ozone production. We used idealized stratospheric air tracers, along with observations, to determine the frequency and extent of SIs in Maryland during July 2011. On 4 of 14 flight days, SIs were detected in layers that the aircraft encountered above the PBL from the coincidence of enhanced ozone, moderate CO, and low moisture. Satellite observations of lower tropospheric humidity confirmed the occurrence of synoptic scale influence of SIs as do simulations with the GEOS-5 Atmospheric General Circulation Model. The evolution of GEOS-5 stratospheric air tracers agree with the timing and location of observed stratospheric influence and indicate that more than 50% of air in SI layers above the PBL had resided in the stratosphere within the previous 14 days. Despite having a strong influence in the lower free troposphere, these events did not significantly affect surface ozone, which remained low on intrusion days. The model indicates similar frequencies of stratospheric influence during all summers from 2009-2013. GEOS-5 results suggest that, over Maryland, the strong inversion capping the summer PBL limits downward mixing of stratospheric air during much of the day, helping to preserve low surface ozone associated with frontal passages that precede SIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lesley E Ott
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
| | | | | | | | - Zachary Fasnacht
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD USA
| | - Andrew O Langford
- NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory Chemical Sciences Division, Boulder, CO USA
| | - Meiyun Lin
- Program in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, Princeton University and NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Andrea M Molod
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
- Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park Park, MD USA
| | - J Eric Nielsen
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Lanham, MD USA
| | - Sally E Pusede
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
| | - Krzysztof Wargan
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Lanham, MD USA
| | | | - Yasuko Yoshida
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Lanham, MD USA
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