scholarly journals Transport and Variability of Tropospheric Ozone over Oceania and Southern Pacific during the 2019–20 Australian Bushfires

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 3092
Author(s):  
Nelson Bègue ◽  
Hassan Bencherif ◽  
Fabrice Jégou ◽  
Hélène Vérèmes ◽  
Sergey Khaykin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Smoke Plume ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Distributions ◽  
Ozone Profile ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
The Vertical Distribution

The present study contributes to the scientific effort for a better understanding of the potential of the Australian biomass burning events to influence tropospheric trace gas abundances at the regional scale. In order to exclude the influence of the long-range transport of ozone precursors from biomass burning plumes originating from Southern America and Africa, the analysis of the Australian smoke plume has been driven over the period December 2019 to January 2020. This study uses satellite (IASI, MLS, MODIS, CALIOP) and ground-based (sun-photometer, FTIR, ozone radiosondes) observations. The highest values of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and carbon monoxide total columns are observed over Southern and Central Australia. Transport is responsible for the spatial and temporal distributions of aerosols and carbon monoxide over Australia, and also the transport of the smoke plume outside the continent. The dispersion of the tropospheric smoke plume over Oceania and Southern Pacific extends from tropical to extratropical latitudes. Ozone radiosonde measurements performed at Samoa (14.4°S, 170.6°W) and Lauder (45.0°S, 169.4°E) indicate an increase in mid-tropospheric ozone (6–9 km) (from 10% to 43%) linked to the Australian biomass burning plume. This increase in mid-tropospheric ozone induced by the transport of the smoke plume was found to be consistent with MLS observations over the tropical and extratropical latitudes. The smoke plume over the Southern Pacific was organized as a stretchable anticyclonic rolling which impacted the ozone variability in the tropical and subtropical upper-troposphere over Oceania. This is corroborated by the ozone profile measurements at Samoa which exhibit an enhanced ozone layer (29%) in the upper-troposphere. Our results suggest that the transport of Australian biomass burning plumes have significantly impacted the vertical distribution of ozone in the mid-troposphere southern tropical to extratropical latitudes during the 2019–20 extreme Australian bushfires.

scholarly journals Biomass-burning smoke heights over the Amazon observed from space

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 1685-1702 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Gonzalez-Alonso ◽  
Maria Val Martin ◽  
Ralph A. Kahn
Keyword(s):  
Vertical Distribution ◽  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Atmospheric Stability ◽  
Free Troposphere ◽  
Smoke Plume ◽  
Smoke Plumes ◽  
Drought Conditions ◽  
The Vertical Distribution

Abstract. We characterise the vertical distribution of biomass-burning emissions across the Amazon during the biomass-burning season (July–November) with an extensive climatology of smoke plumes derived from MISR and MODIS (2005–2012) and CALIOP (2006–2012) observations. Smoke plume heights exhibit substantial variability, spanning a few hundred metres up to 6 km above the terrain. However, the majority of the smoke is located at altitudes below 2.5 km. About 60 % of smoke plumes are observed in drought years, 40 %–50 % at the peak month of the burning season (September) and 94 % over tropical forest and savanna regions, with respect to the total number of smoke plume observations. At the time of the MISR observations (10:00–11:00 LT), the highest plumes are detected over grassland fires (with an averaged maximum plume height of ∼1100 m) and the lowest plumes occur over tropical forest fires (∼800 m). A similar pattern is found later in the day (14:00–15:00 LT) with CALIOP, although at higher altitudes (2300 m grassland vs. 2000 m tropical forest), as CALIOP typically detects smoke at higher altitudes due to its later overpass time, associated with a deeper planetary boundary layer, possibly more energetic fires, and greater sensitivity to thin aerosol layers. On average, 3 %–20 % of the fires inject smoke into the free troposphere; this percentage tends to increase toward the end of the burning season (November: 15 %–40 %). We find a well-defined seasonal cycle between MISR plume heights, MODIS fire radiative power and atmospheric stability across the main biomes of the Amazon, with higher smoke plumes, more intense fires and reduced atmospheric stability conditions toward the end of the burning season. Lower smoke plume heights are detected during drought (800 m) compared to non-drought (1100 m) conditions, in particular over tropical forest and savanna fires. Drought conditions favour understory fires over tropical forest, which tend to produce smouldering combustion and low smoke injection heights. Droughts also seem to favour deeper boundary layers and the percentage of smoke plumes that reach the free troposphere is lower during these dry conditions. Consistent with previous studies, the MISR mid-visible aerosol optical depth demonstrates that smoke makes a significant contribution to the total aerosol loading over the Amazon, which in combination with lower injection heights in drought periods has important implications for air quality. This work highlights the importance of biome type, fire properties and atmospheric and drought conditions for plume dynamics and smoke loading. In addition, our study demonstrates the value of combining observations of MISR and CALIOP constraints on the vertical distribution of smoke from biomass burning over the Amazon.

scholarly journals Remote sensed and in situ constraints on processes affecting tropical tropospheric ozone

2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 815-838 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Sauvage ◽  
R. V. Martin ◽  
A. van Donkelaar ◽  
X. Liu ◽  
K. Chance ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Model Bias ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Tropospheric O3 ◽  
Bias Versus

Abstract. We use a global chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) to evaluate the consistency of satellite measurements of lightning flashes and ozone precursors with in situ measurements of tropical tropospheric ozone. The measurements are tropospheric O3, NO2, and HCHO columns from the GOME satellite instrument, lightning flashes from the OTD and LIS satellite instruments, profiles of O3, CO, and relative humidity from the MOZAIC aircraft program, and profiles of O3 from the SHADOZ ozonesonde network. We interpret these multiple data sources with our model to better understand what controls tropical tropospheric ozone. Tropical tropospheric ozone is mainly affected by lightning NOx and convection in the upper troposphere and by surface emissions in the lower troposphere. Scaling the spatial distribution of lightning in the model to the observed flashes improves the simulation of O3 in the upper troposphere by 5–20 ppbv versus in situ observations and by 1–4 Dobson Units versus GOME retrievals of tropospheric O3 columns. A lightning source strength of 6±2 Tg N/yr best represents in situ observations from aircraft and ozonesonde. Tropospheric NO2 and HCHO columns from GOME are applied to provide top-down constraints on emission inventories of NOx (biomass burning and soils) and VOCs (biomass burning). The top-down biomass burning inventory is larger than the bottom-up inventory by a factor of 2 for HCHO and alkenes, and by a factor of 2.6 for NOx over northern equatorial Africa. These emissions increase lower tropospheric O3 by 5–20 ppbv, improving the simulation versus aircraft observations, and by 4 Dobson Units versus GOME observations of tropospheric O3 columns. Emission factors in the a posteriori inventory are more consistent with a recent compilation from in situ measurements. The ozone simulation using two different dynamical schemes (GEOS-3 and GEOS-4) is evaluated versus observations; GEOS-4 better represents O3 observations by 5–15 ppbv, reflecting enhanced convective detrainment in the upper troposphere. Heterogeneous uptake of HNO3 on aerosols reduces simulated O3 by 5–7 ppbv, reducing a model bias versus in situ observations over and downwind of deserts. Exclusion of HO2 uptake on aerosols increases O3 by 5 ppbv in biomass burning regions, reducing a model bias versus MOZAIC aircraft measurements.

scholarly journals Investigation of the short-time variability of tropical tropospheric ozone

2003 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
pp. 2095-2106 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Randriambelo ◽  
J.-L. Baray ◽  
S. Baldy ◽  
A. M. Thompson ◽  
S. Oltmans ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Tropical Meteorology ◽  
Atmospheric Composition ◽  
Time Variability ◽  
Reunion Island ◽  
Ozone Profile ◽  
Réunion Island

Abstract. Since 1998, a ground-based tropospheric ozone lidar has been running at Reunion Island and has been involved with a daily measurement campaign that was performed in the latter part of the biomass burning season, during November–December 1999. The averaged ozone profile obtained during November–December 1999 agrees well with the averaged ozone profile obtained from the ozonesondes launch at Reunion during November–December (1992– 2001). Comparing weekly sonde launches (part of the Southern Hemisphere Additional Ozonesondes: SHADOZ program) with the daily ground-based lidar observations shows that some striking features of the day-to-day variability profiles are not observed in the sonde measurements. Ozone profiles respond to the nature of disturbances which vary from one day to the next. The vertical ozone distribution at Reunion is examined as a function of prevailing atmospheric circulation. Back trajectories show that most of the enhanced ozone crossed over biomass burning and convectively active regions in Madagascar and the southern African continent. The analyses of the meteorological data show that ozone stratification profiles are in agreement with the movement of the synoptic situations in November–December 1999. Three different sequences of transport are explained using wind fields. The first sequence from 23 to 25 November is characterized by northerly transport; during the second sequence from 26 to 30 November, the air masses are influenced by meridional transport. The third sequence from 2 to 6 December is characterized by westerly transport associated with the sub-tropical jet stream. The large, standard deviations of lidar profiles in the middle and upper troposphere are in agreement with the upper wind variabilities which evidence passing ridge and trough disturbances. During the transition period between the dry season and the wet season, multiple ozone sources including stratosphere-troposphere exchanges, convection and biomass burning contribute to tropospheric ozone at Reunion Island through sporadic events characterized by a large spatial and temporal variability.Key words. Atmospheric composition and structure (troposphere-composition and chemistry) – Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (climatology; tropical meteorology)

scholarly journals Remote sensed and in situ constraints on processes affecting tropical tropospheric ozone

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 11465-11520 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Sauvage ◽  
R. V. Martin ◽  
A. van Donkelaar ◽  
X. Liu ◽  
K. Chance ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
Transport Model ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Tropospheric O3

Abstract. We use a global chemical transport model (GEOS-Chem) to evaluate the consistency of satellite measurements of lightning flashes and ozone precursors with in situ measurements of tropical tropospheric ozone. The measurements are tropospheric O3, NO2, and HCHO columns from the GOME satellite instrument, lightning flashes from the OTD and LIS instruments, profiles of O3, CO, and relative humidity from the MOZAIC aircraft program, and profiles of O3 from the SHADOZ ozonesonde network. We interpret these multiple data sources with our model to better understand what controls tropical tropospheric ozone. Tropical tropospheric ozone is mainly affected by lightning and convection in the upper troposphere and by surface emissions in the lower troposphere. Scaling the spatial distribution of lightning in the model to the observed flash counts improves the simulation of O3 in the upper troposphere by 5–20 ppbv versus in situ observations and by 1–4 Dobson Units versus GOME retrievals of tropospheric O3 columns. A lightning source strength of 5±2 Tg N/yr best represents in situ observations from aircraft and ozonesonde. Tropospheric NO2 and HCHO columns from GOME are applied to provide top-down constraints on emission inventories of NOx (biomass burning and soils) and VOCs (biomass burning). The top-down biomass burning inventory is larger by a factor of 2 for HCHO and alkenes, and by 2.6 for NOx over northern equatorial Africa. These emissions increase lower tropospheric O3 by 5–20 ppbv, improving the simulation versus aircraft observations, and by 4 Dobson Units versus GOME observations of tropospheric O3 columns. Emission factors in the a posteriori inventory are more consistent with a recent compilation from in situ measurements. The ozone simulation using two different dynamical schemes (GEOS-3 and GEOS-4) is evaluated versus observations; GEOS-4 better represents O3 observations by 5–15 ppbv due to enhanced convective detrainment in the upper troposphere. Heterogeneous uptake of HNO3 on aerosols reduces simulated O3 by 5–7 ppbv, reducing a model bias versus in situ observations over and downwind of deserts. Exclusion of HO2 uptake on aerosols improves O3 by 5 ppbv in biomass burning regions.

scholarly journals Impact of surface emissions to the zonal variability of tropical tropospheric ozone and carbon monoxide for november 2004

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1505-1548 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. W. Bowman ◽  
D. Jones ◽  
J. Logan ◽  
H. Worden ◽  
F. Boersma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
Transport Model ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Ozone Monitoring Instrument ◽  
Surface Emission ◽  
Elevated Ozone ◽  
Ozone Profile ◽  
A Posteriori Estimates

Abstract. The chemical and dynamical processes governing the zonal variability of tropical tropospheric ozone and carbon monoxide are investigated for November 2004 using satellite observations, in-situ measurements, and chemical transport models in conjunction with inverse-estimated surface emissions. Vertical ozone profile estimates from the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) and ozone sonde measurements from the Southern Hemisphere Additional Ozonesondes (SHADOZ) network show the so-called zonal "wave-one" pattern, which is characterized by peak ozone concentrations (70–80 ppb) centered over the Atlantic, as well as elevated concentrations of ozone over Indonesia and Australia (60–70 ppb) in the lower troposphere. Observational evidence from TES CO vertical profiles and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) NO2 columns point to regional surface emissions as an important contributor to the elevated ozone over Indonesia. This contribution is investigated with the GEOS-Chem chemistry and transport model using surface emission estimates derived from an optimal inverse model, which was constrained by TES and Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) CO profiles (Jones et al., 2007). These a posteriori estimates, which were over a factor of 2 greater than climatological emissions, reduced differences between GEOS-Chem and TES ozone observations by 30–40% and led to changes in GEOS-Chem upper tropospheric ozone of up to 40% over Indonesia. The remaining residual differences can be explained in part by upper tropospheric ozone produced from lightning NOx in the South Atlantic. Furthermore, model simulations from GEOS-Chem indicate that ozone over Indonesian/Australian is more sensitive to changes in surface emissions of NOx than ozone over the tropical Atlantic.

scholarly journals Emission sources contributing to tropospheric ozone over equatorial Africa during the summer monsoon

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 13769-13827
Author(s):  
I. Bouarar ◽  
K. S. Law ◽  
M. Pham ◽  
C. Liousse ◽  
H. Schlager ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Summer Monsoon ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Tropospheric Ozone ◽  
Anthropogenic Emissions ◽  
Model Calculations ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Sahel Region ◽  
Lightning Nox

Abstract. A global chemistry-climate model LMDz_INCA is used to investigate the contribution of African and Asian emissions to tropospheric ozone over central and West Africa during the summer monsoon. The model results show that ozone in this region is most sensitive to lightning NOx and to central African biomass burning emissions. However, other emission categories also contribute significantly to regional ozone. The maximum ozone changes due to lightning NOx occur in the upper troposphere between 400 hPa and 200 hPa over West Africa and downwind over the Atlantic Ocean. Biomass burning emissions mainly influence ozone in the lower and middle troposphere over central Africa, and downwind due to westward transport. Biogenic emissions of volatile organic compounds, which can be uplifted from the lower troposphere into higher altitudes by the deep convection that occurs over West Africa during the monsoon season, dominate the ozone changes in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region. Convective uplift of soil NOx emissions over the Sahel region also makes a significant contribution to ozone in the upper troposphere. Concerning African anthropogenic emissions, they make a lower contribution to ozone compared to the other emission categories. The model results indicate that most ozone changes due to African emissions occur downwind, especially over the Atlantic Ocean, far from the emission regions. The influence of Asian emissions should also be taken into account in studies of the ozone budget over Africa since they make a considerable contribution to ozone concentrations above 150 hPa. Using IPCC AR5 (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; Fifth Assessment Report) estimates of anthropogenic emissions for 2030 over Africa and Asia, the model calculations suggest largest changes in ozone due to the growth of emissions over Asia than over Africa over the next 20 years.

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