HR: 17:00h
AN: A42G-04    [PDF]
TI: POAM III Observations During the SOLVE2/VINTERSOL Winter: PSCs, Denitrification, and Ozone Loss
AU: * Bevilacqua, R M
EM: bevilacqua@nrl.navy.mil
AF: Naval Research Laboratory, Code 7220, Washington, DC 20375
AU: Hoppel, K
EM: karl.hoppel@nrl.navy.mil
AF: Naval Research Laboratory, Code 7220, Washington, DC 20375
AU: Fromm, M
EM: fromm@nrl.navy.mil
AF: Computational Physics Inc., 8001 Braddock Road, Springfield, VA 22151
AU: Randall, C
EM: cora.randall@lasp.colorado.edu
AF: Laboratory for Amospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309
AU: Lumpe, J
EM: lumpe@cpi.com
AF: Computational Physics Inc., 8001 Braddock Road, Springfield, VA 22151
AU: Alfred, J
EM: alfred@cpi.com
AF: Computational Physics Inc., 8001 Braddock Road, Springfield, VA 22151
AB: The POAM III satellite instrument was fully operational during the SOLVE2/VINTERSOL campaign (2002/3 northern hemisphere winter), and sampled the vortex core, the vortex edge, and outside the vortex throughout this winter. In this paper we present an overview of POAM observations and analysis obtained during the SOLVE2/VINTERSOL winter. PSCs were observed quite frequently in the early part of the winter (through December). In fact, in the first half of December the PSC occurrence frequency was larger in the 2002/3 winter than that observed in any other POAM measurement year (POAM II: 1993/94-1995/96, and POAM III: 1998/99-2002/03). After a warming, which occurred in mid-January, PSCs were observed only episodically for the remainder of the winter, and the last POAM PSC observation was made on 21 March. From an analysis of PSC occurrence frequency as a function of UKMO temperature, we infer that the intense PSC activity in December resulted in extensive denitrification of the polar vortex by the beginning of January. Furthermore, the analysis suggests that when PSCs were again observed in early February (after the mid-January warming) the vortex remained denitrified. Significant ozone loss was observed in the early part of the winter, particularly between early December and late January. Vortex average ozone mixing ratios in the lower stratosphere in late January were lower by nearly 1 ppmv than those observed in any other POAM measurement year. Finally, we present estimates of ozone chemical loss determined using POAM data and the vortex average descent method.
DE: 0305 Aerosols and particles (0345, 4801)
DE: 0340 Middle atmosphere--composition and chemistry
SC: Atmospheric Sciences [A]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting