RAPID: Collaborative Research: Flask and in Situ Measurements of Carbon and Climate Tracers on ATom-1

University Corporation For Atmospheric Res, Boulder CO

Investigators

Abstract

This project will support NSF-funded investigators to participate in the upcoming NASA-funded ATom (Atmospheric Tomography Mission) project. The objective of ATom is to map the global atmospheric distribution of particles, reactive gases, and short-lived species relevant for understanding climate. Two instrument packages will be added to the first of four deployments of the NASA DC-8 aircraft scheduled for June-August 2016. These instruments will provide data critical for advancing fundamental aspects of carbon and climate science. The two instrument packages to be deployed are the NCAR Airborne Oxygen Instrument (AO2), which provides rapid in situ measurements of atmospheric O2 and CO2 concentrations, and the NCAR/Scripps Medusa flask sampler, which collects samples for analysis of O2/N2, CO2 concentration, CO2 isotopes and Ar/N2. Both of these instruments are mature and have been used extensively, including on the 5 NSF-supported HIPPO campaigns from 2009-2011. By combining these measurements with large-scale atmospheric transport models, direct constraints on the corresponding air-sea fluxes of heat, O2, and CO2 are obtained. This research will advance a broader range of issues related to the carbon cycle and climate, such as the distribution of carbon sinks and the links between ocean biochemistry, carbon cycling, and climate change.