HR: 10:50h
AN: A31G-03 INVITED     [PDF]
TI: Quantifying Transport Pathways in the Middleworld During CRYSTAL-FACE Using Tracer-Tracer Correlations and a Simple Mixing Model
AU: * Weinstock, E M
EM: elliot@huarp.harvard.edu
AF: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Pittman, J V
EM: vellovic@huarp.harvard.edu
AF: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Sayres, D
EM: sayres@huarp.harvard.edu
AF: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Smith, J B
EM: jxsmith@huarp.harvard.edu
AF: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Anderson, J G
EM: anderson@huarp.harvard.edu
AF: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, 12 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Gerbig, C
EM: chg@io.harvard.edu
AF: Division of Engineering and Applied Science and Department of earth and Planetary Sciences, 20 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Daube, B
EM: bcd@io.harvard.edu
AF: Division of Engineering and Applied Science and Department of earth and Planetary Sciences, 20 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Wofsy, S
EM: scw@io.harvard.edu
AF: Division of Engineering and Applied Science and Department of earth and Planetary Sciences, 20 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 United States
AU: Richard, E
EM: richard@al.noaa.gov
AF: Aeronomy Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305 United States
AU: Weinheimer, A
EM: wein@ucar.edu
AF: Atmospheric Chemistry Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, 1850 Table Mesa Drive, Boulder, CO 80305 United States
AU: Ridley, B
EM: ridley@ucar.edu
AF: Atmospheric Chemistry Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, 1850 Table Mesa Drive, Boulder, CO 80305 United States
AU: Jost, H
EM: hjost@mail.arc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Mountain View, CA 94035 United States
AU: Loewenstein, M
EM: mloewenstein@mail.arc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Mountain View, CA 94035 United States
AU: Lopez, J
EM: jlivingston@mail.arc.nasa.gov
AF: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Mountain View, CA 94035 United States
AB: Evidence from both satellite observations and previous aircraft missions (STRAT, POLARIS, SOLVE, CRYSTAL FACE, etc.) has illustrated the importance, seasonal idiosyncrasies, and complexity of middleworld dynamics. It is therefore vital to develop a framework for quantitatively understanding transport pathways in the middleworld, the lack of which continuously frustrates our ability to predict the behavior of both mid-latitude ozone and water vapor in this region over the coming decades. Toward this end, we have developed a simple mixing model that uses in situ tracer data to study the dynamics of the middleworld during CRYSTAL FACE. We consider four possible transport pathways into the middleworld: 1- diabatic descent from the tropical stratosphere, 2- quasi-isentropic transport equatorward from higher northern latitudes, 3- quasi-isentropic transport poleward from the upper tropical troposphere, and 4-convective input, either directly from below, or from other latitudes. We create initial profiles for each transport pathway using ozonesonde data and in situ measurements from previous aircraft campaigns and use a least squares fitting routine to match the measured composition of each sampled air parcel independently. We test the model using high resolution, in situ measurements of H2O, O3, CO2, CO and NOy taken aboard NASA's WB-57 during the 2002 CRYSTAL FACE mission over southern Florida. The output of the model gives the fraction of air in the parcel corresponding to each transport pathway. We compare two flights during the mission for which isentropic back trajectories indicate very different stratospheric source regions, as well as one during which air parcels sampled near the 380K isentrope contain high CO and water vapor mixing ratios indicative of midlatitude convection. We also explore the dependence of the results on uncertainties in the source profiles we use. To significantly reduce these uncertainties, and to explore the dynamics and chemical composition of the middleworld more fully, we propose that the WB57 serve as the platform to provide systematic and repetitive soundings of the latitudinal and longitudinal structure of the middleworld with the appropriate complement of instruments.
DE: 0341 Middle atmosphere--constituent transport and chemistry (3334)
DE: 0368 Troposphere--constituent transport and chemistry
DE: 3334 Middle atmosphere dynamics (0341, 0342)
SC: Atmospheric Sciences [A]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting