Measurements of Mixing, 13C/12C and D/H Ratios of CH4; Mixing and 13C/12C Ratios of CO and Mixing Ratios of NMHCs from Air Samples Collected Between Los Angeles, CA & Auckland, NZ

University Of California-Irvine, Irvine CA

Investigators

Abstract

Methane (CH4) plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry and greenhouse warming. Its global concentration level has been increasing in recent years and the causes of this increase are not well understood. Surface clean air samples have been collected from a transect of the Pacific Ocean between Los Angeles, California, and Auckland, New Zealand. Under this project, these samples will be analyzed for 13C/12C, D/H, and mixing ratios of CH4, 13C/12C and mixing ratios of carbon monoxide (CO) as well as mixing ratios of selected nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHC). The results of these measurements will be incorporated into an existing database for atmospheric modeling for constraining the global CH4 budget. These measurements also provide details on the interhemispheric concentration gradients of CH4 and other trace gases as well as information on atmospheric mixing across the Intertropical Conversion Zone (ITCZ), which acts as a buffer controlling movement of air between the Northern and Southern hemispheres