Whole Air Sampling Measurements and Data Analysis from the Stratosphere-Troposphere Analyses of Regional Transport 2008 Experiment and the HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observation Campaign

University Of Miami, Coral Gables FL

Investigators

Abstract

This project combines research related to two major airborne atmospheric chemistry studies: the recently completed Stratosphere-Troposphere Analyses of Regional Transport 2008 Experiment (START08) and the on-going High-performance Instrumented Airborne Platform for Environmental Research (HIAPER) Pole-to-Pole Observation (HIPPO) campaign. The START08 experiment was designed to examine the chemical structure of the extratropical upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UT/LS) in relation to dynamical processes of a range of scales. Tracer measurements in well-defined meteorological conditions were a key component of the experimental design. The research will continue the data analysis in collaboration with others on the START08 team. In particular, this project seeks to use the unique trace gas data set from the PI's AWAS (automated whole air sampler) measurements and related measurements to examine tropospheric intrusions into the stratosphere, to evaluate mixing time scales for stratosphere-troposphere exchange, and to estimate age spectra in the UT/LS region. Further, the data will be used for comparison of chemical model simulations to satellite derived distributions and relationships in the UT/LS. The HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observation (HIPPO) project is a multi-year research effort that focuses on understanding the global carbon cycle, on defining large-scale rates of tracer transport in the troposphere, and on understanding sources and sinks globally for carbon gases. While the emphasis of HIPPO is on carbon cycle gases, the project includes the measurement of a wider range of trace gases that complement that analysis of the major carbon cycle gases and provide additional characterization of hemispheric scale air quality and gases relevant to ozone chemistry. The PI will participate in the remaining three HIPPO global surveys and subsequent data interpretation to complete the seasonally resolved, global distributions of climate-relevant trace gases, which provides a unique benchmark of measurements for understanding emissions, transport, and as an unprecedented test for model simulations of global atmospheric chemistry. The measurement and analysis of the suite of trace gases will add to the understanding of the relationships between greenhouse and carbon cycle gases and other climate-relevant trace gases in the atmosphere. The project also supports the development of a deployable aircraft instrument as a community resource by direct comparison to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) flasks commonly used throughout the NOAA global network. Finally, the HIPPO and START08 projects, and these measurements, will involve training of students and post-doctoral scientists, and the project will add to the development of graduate and undergraduate courses in atmospheric chemistry and environmental science.