Observations of atmospheric iodine-containing species during the MOSAiC expedition

Author(s):  
Deniz Kemppainen ◽  
Lauriane Quéléver ◽  
Ivo Beck ◽  
Tiia Laurila ◽  
Janne Lampilahti ◽  
...  

<p>The Arctic is a unique region featuring many environmental variations from a season to another. For example, sea ice is highly dynamic, with varying thickness and homogeneity, ultimately leading to open sea with a boost of biological activity during the warmest month. This, in turn, affects the emissions of gas-phase chemicals, potentially impacting New Particle Formation (NPF) and subsequent aerosol growth.</p><p>Several chemical vapors such as sulfuric acid (SA) and methane sulfonic acid (MSA) are known to possibly contribute to NPF and/or particle growth. Additionally, halogenated compounds, such as iodic acid, have recently revealed to be important for the formation of aerosol particles, especially in coastal and Arctic sites.</p><p>Few studies exist regarding direct measurements of iodic acid in the high Arctic, and none of them report multi-seasonal continuous observations - especially during the polar-night when the extremely low temperatures and the absence of solar radiation would likely prohibit any synthesis of such chemical species.</p><p>Here, we present our observations of iodine-containing vapors, principally iodic acid, as the result of continuous on-line measurements with the Nitrate based Chemical Ionization Atmospheric Pressure interface Time Of Flight Mass Spectrometer (NO<sub>3</sub>-CI-APi-TOF-MS) during the whole Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory of the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition. In this study we combine and examine iodic acid multi-seasonal concentration time series in the central Arctic. In short, we aim at characterizing the observed iodic acid with the central Arctic environmental conditions (e.g., meteorological conditions, sea ice features and trace gases) and the linkage to NPF and particle growth.</p><p> </p>

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 3949-3979 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Toyota ◽  
J. C. McConnell ◽  
A. Lupu ◽  
L. Neary ◽  
C. A. McLinden ◽  
...  

Abstract. Episodes of high bromine levels and surface ozone depletion in the springtime Arctic are simulated by an online air-quality model, GEM-AQ, with gas-phase and heterogeneous reactions of inorganic bromine species and a simple scheme of air-snowpack chemical interactions implemented for this study. Snowpack on sea ice is assumed to be the only source of bromine to the atmosphere and to be capable of converting relatively stable bromine species to photolabile Br2 via air-snowpack interactions. A set of sensitivity model runs are performed for April 2001 at a horizontal resolution of approximately 100 km×100 km in the Arctic, to provide insights into the effects of temperature and the age (first-year, FY, versus multi-year, MY) of sea ice on the release of reactive bromine to the atmosphere. The model simulations capture much of the temporal variations in surface ozone mixing ratios as observed at stations in the high Arctic and the synoptic-scale evolution of areas with enhanced BrO column amount ("BrO clouds") as estimated from satellite observations. The simulated "BrO clouds" are in modestly better agreement with the satellite measurements when the FY sea ice is assumed to be more efficient at releasing reactive bromine to the atmosphere than on the MY sea ice. Surface ozone data from coastal stations used in this study are not sufficient to evaluate unambiguously the difference between the FY sea ice and the MY sea ice as a source of bromine. The results strongly suggest that reactive bromine is released ubiquitously from the snow on the sea ice during the Arctic spring while the timing and location of the bromine release are largely controlled by meteorological factors. It appears that a rapid advection and an enhanced turbulent diffusion associated with strong boundary-layer winds drive transport and dispersion of ozone to the near-surface air over the sea ice, increasing the oxidation rate of bromide (Br−) in the surface snow. Also, if indeed the surface snowpack does supply most of the reactive bromine in the Arctic boundary layer, it appears to be capable of releasing reactive bromine at temperatures as high as −10 °C, particularly on the sea ice in the central and eastern Arctic Ocean. Dynamically-induced BrO column variability in the lowermost stratosphere appears to interfere with the use of satellite BrO column measurements for interpreting BrO variability in the lower troposphere but probably not to the extent of totally obscuring "BrO clouds" that originate from the surface snow/ice source of bromine in the high Arctic. A budget analysis of the simulated air-surface exchange of bromine compounds suggests that a "bromine explosion" occurs in the interstitial air of the snowpack and/or is accelerated by heterogeneous reactions on the surface of wind-blown snow in ambient air, both of which are not represented explicitly in our simple model but could have been approximated by a parameter adjustment for the yield of Br2 from the trigger.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Payton ◽  
Céline Noirot ◽  
Claire Hoede ◽  
Lukas Hüppe ◽  
Kim Last ◽  
...  

AbstractThe zooplankter Calanus finmarchicus is a member of the so-called “Calanus Complex”, a group of copepods that constitutes a key element of the Arctic polar marine ecosystem, providing a crucial link between primary production and higher trophic levels. Climate change induces the shift of C. finmarchicus to higher latitudes with currently unknown impacts on its endogenous timing. Here we generated a daily transcriptome of C. finmarchicus at two high Arctic stations, during the more extreme time of Midnight Sun, the summer solstice. While the southern station (74.5 °N) was sea ice-free, the northern one (82.5 °N) was sea ice-covered. The mRNAs of the 42 samples have been sequenced with an average of 126 ± 5 million reads (mean ± SE) per sample, and aligned to the reference transcriptome. We detail the quality assessment of the datasets and the complete annotation procedure, providing the possibility to investigate daily gene expression of this ecologically important species at high Arctic latitudes, and to compare gene expression according to latitude and sea ice-coverage.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian Young ◽  
Jutta Vüllers ◽  
Peggy Achtert ◽  
Paul Field ◽  
Jonathan Day ◽  
...  

<p>State-of-the-art numerical models such as the UK Met Office Unified Model and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting Integrated Forecasting System are crucial tools for forecasting future Arctic warming. However, their ability to reproduce clouds and boundary layer meteorology in the high Arctic has not been thoroughly evaluated following significant model developments over the last 10 years. Model evaluation is key to understanding where remaining process weaknesses lie, thus informing further parametrization developments to improve the simulated surface energy budget.</p><p>Here, we evaluate model performance with comparison to observations made during the Arctic Ocean 2018 expedition, where a suite of remote-sensing instrumentation was active aboard the Swedish icebreaker <em>Oden </em>measuring summertime Arctic cloud and boundary layer properties. We find that both models do not reproduce cloud fractions well at altitude (up to 8 km) and overestimate the occurrence of low (<1 km) clouds during the sea ice melt period of the expedition. Low cloud agreement with observations improves when the sea ice begins to refreeze; however, the underestimation of cloud aloft remains consistent regardless of sea ice conditions. In this presentation, we will indicate which model processes need to be improved to capture these summertime Arctic clouds more effectively.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (15) ◽  
pp. 10239-10256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingeborg E. Nielsen ◽  
Henrik Skov ◽  
Andreas Massling ◽  
Axel C. Eriksson ◽  
Manuel Dall'Osto ◽  
...  

Abstract. There are limited measurements of the chemical composition, abundance and sources of atmospheric particles in the High Arctic To address this, we report 93 d of soot particle aerosol mass spectrometer (SP-AMS) data collected from 20 February to 23 May 2015 at Villum Research Station (VRS) in northern Greenland (81∘36′ N). During this period, we observed the Arctic haze phenomenon with elevated PM1 concentrations ranging from an average of 2.3, 2.3 and 3.3 µg m−3 in February, March and April, respectively, to 1.2 µg m−3 in May. Particulate sulfate (SO42-) accounted for 66 % of the non-refractory PM1 with the highest concentration until the end of April and decreasing in May. The second most abundant species was organic aerosol (OA) (24 %). Both OA and PM1, estimated from the sum of all collected species, showed a marked decrease throughout May in accordance with the polar front moving north, together with changes in aerosol removal processes. The highest refractory black carbon (rBC) concentrations were found in the first month of the campaign, averaging 0.2 µg m−3. In March and April, rBC averaged 0.1 µg m−3 while decreasing to 0.02 µg m−3 in May. Positive matrix factorization (PMF) of the OA mass spectra yielded three factors: (1) a hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (HOA) factor, which was dominated by primary aerosols and accounted for 12 % of OA mass, (2) an Arctic haze organic aerosol (AOA) factor and (3) a more oxygenated marine organic aerosol (MOA) factor. AOA dominated until mid-April (64 %–81 % of OA), while being nearly absent from the end of May and correlated significantly with SO42-, suggesting the main part of that factor is secondary OA. The MOA emerged late at the end of March, where it increased with solar radiation and reduced sea ice extent and dominated OA for the rest of the campaign until the end of May (24 %–74 % of OA), while AOA was nearly absent. The highest O∕C ratio (0.95) and S∕C ratio (0.011) was found for MOA. Our data support the current understanding that Arctic aerosols are highly influenced by secondary aerosol formation and receives an important contribution from marine emissions during Arctic spring in remote High Arctic areas. In view of a changing Arctic climate with changing sea-ice extent, biogenic processes and corresponding source strengths, highly time-resolved data are needed in order to elucidate the components dominating aerosol concentrations and enhance the understanding of the processes taking place.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lilian Loyer ◽  
Jean-Christophe Raut ◽  
Claudia Di Biagio ◽  
Julia Maillard ◽  
Vincent Mariage ◽  
...  

Abstract. The Arctic is facing drastic climate changes that are not correctly represented by state-of-the-art models because of complex feedbacks between radiation, clouds and sea-ice surfaces. A better understanding of the surface energy budget requires radiative measurements that are limited in time and space in the High Arctic (> 80° N) and mostly obtained through specific expeditions. Six years of lidar observations onboard buoys drifting in the Arctic Ocean above 83° N have been carried out as part of the IAOOS (Ice Atmosphere arctic Ocean Operating System) project. The objective of this study is to investigate the possibility to extent the IAOOS dataset to provide estimates of the shortwave (SW) and longwave (LW) surface irradiances from lidar measurements on drifting buoys. Our approach relies on the use of the STREAMER radiative transfer model to estimate the downwelling SW scattered radiances from the background noise measured by lidar. Those radiances are then used to derive estimates of the cloud optical depths. In turn, the knowledge of the cloud optical depth enables to estimate the SW and LW (using additional IAOOS measured information) downwelling irradiances at the surface. The method was applied to the IAOOS buoy measurements in spring 2015, and retrieved cloud optical depths were compared to those derived from radiative irradiances measured during the N-ICE (Norwegian Young Sea Ice Experiment) campaign at the meteorological station, in the vicinity of the drifting buoys. Retrieved and measured SW and LW irradiances were then compared. Results showed overall good agreement. Cloud optical depths were estimated with a rather large dispersion of about 47 %. LW irradiances showed a fairly small dispersion (within 5 W m−2), with a corrigible residual bias (3 W m−2). The estimated uncertainty of the SW irradiances was 4 %. But, as for the cloud optical depth, the SW irradiances showed the occurrence of a few outliers, that may be due to a short lidar sequence acquisition time (no more than four times 10 mn per day), possibly not long enough to smooth out cloud heterogeneity. The net SW and LW irradiances are retrieved within 13 W m−2.


2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 14813-14836 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Fenger ◽  
L. L. Sørensen ◽  
K. Kristensen ◽  
B. Jensen ◽  
Q. T. Nquyen ◽  
...  

Abstract. The knowledge of climate effects of atmospheric aerosols is associated with large uncertainty, and a better understanding of their physical and chemical properties is needed, especially in the Arctic environment. The objective of the present study is to improve our understanding of the processes affecting the composition of the aerosols in the high Arctic. Therefore size-segregated aerosols were sampled at a high Arctic site, Station Nord (Northeast Greenland), in March 2009 using a Micro Orifice Uniform Deposit Impactor. The aerosol samples were extracted in order to analyze the three water-soluble anions: chloride, nitrate and sulphate. The results are discussed based on possible chemical and physical transformations as well as transport patterns. The total concentrations of the ions at Station Nord were 53–507 ng m−3, 2–298 ng m−3 and 535–1087 ng m−3 for chloride (Cl−), nitrate (NO3-) and sulphate (SO42−), respectively. The aerosols in late winter/early spring, after polar sunrise, are found to be a mixture of long-range transported and regional to local originating aerosols. Fine particles, smaller than 1 μm, containing SO42−, Cl− and NO3−, are hypothesized to originate from long-range transport, where SO42− is by far the dominating anion accounting for 50–85% of the analyzed mass. The analysis suggests that Cl− and NO3− in coarser particles (>1.5 μm) originate from local/regional sources. Under conditions where the air mass is transported over sea-ice at high wind speeds, very coarse particles (>18 μm) are observed and it is hypothesized that frost flowers on the sea ice is a source of very coarse chloride particles in the Arctic.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tuuli Lehmusjärvi ◽  
Roseline Thakur ◽  
Lisa Beck ◽  
Mikko Sipilä ◽  
Tuija Jokinen

<p>In the high Arctic, the climate is warming faster than in the lower latitudes due to the Arctic amplification. Sea ice is melting and permafrost is thawing, and the scarce vegetation of the Arctic is changing rapidly. All these varying conditions will have an impact on possible emission sources of aerosol precursor gases, thus affecting the New Particle Formation (NPF) in the Arctic atmosphere, of which we still know very little. It is important to study the NPF events, which parameters affect the aerosol phase and how these newly formed aerosols can grow into cloud condensation nuclei sizes. Only then, it is possible to understand how climate change is affecting the aerosol population, clouds and regional climate of the pristine Arctic. The role of the precursor gases like Sulphuric Acid (SA), Iodic Acid (IA), Methane Sulphonic Acid (MSA) and Highly Oxygenated organic Molecules (HOM) in NPF in boreal and urban environments has been explored to a great extent. However, the role of these precursor gases in NPF events in remote locations - devoid of pollution sources and the vegetation - is still ambiguous. Therefore, it is crucial to conduct long-term measurements to study the composition and concentrations of aerosol precursors molecules, nanoparticles and air ions in remote and climatically fragile place like Ny-Ålesund in the Arctic. This research location is not only a natural pristine laboratory to understand the atmospheric processes but also acts as a climate mirror reflecting the most drastic changes happening in the atmosphere and cryosphere. In this study, we aim to enhance the understanding of the role of aerosol precursor gases in new particle formation in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard.</p><p>            We have studied aerosol particle formation now for almost three years in the Ny-Ålesund research village in Svalbard (78° 55' 24.7368'' N, 11° 54' 35.6220'' E.) with the Neutral cluster and Air Ion Spectrometer (NAIS) measuring ~1-40 nm particles and ions. We have conducted measurements with a Chemical Ionization Atmospheric Pressure interface Time Of Flight (CI-APi-TOF) mass spectrometer to understand the chemical composition of organic precursors vapours and abundance of inorganic aerosol precursor gases such as SA, MSA and IA. Additionally,  we have studied the emission and composition of volatile organic compounds on the site during summer-time.</p><p>            In this study, we report the time series concentrations of the most common aerosol precursor gases like SA, MSA, IA and HOM from the period 28.6.-25.7.2019, which are responsible for the initiation and/or growth of particles. The variability in the concentrations of these vapours is compared between NPF event and non-event days. The study explores also the role of meteorological parameters like wind speed, wind direction, temperature and humidity on NPF processes.</p>


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonja Murto ◽  
Rodrigo Caballero ◽  
Gunilla Svensson

<p>Atmospheric blockings are defined as quasi-stationary synoptic-scale systems of high pressure that can influence different weather events. Previous studies have examined the role of blockings in favoring intense poleward moisture transport into the Arctic and the role of polar anticyclones to Arctic sea-ice loss (e.g. Woods et al. 2013; Wernli & Papritz 2018). However, the mechanisms and theories for blocking formation and maintenance, in combination with their contributions to the Arctic climate, are yet not fully understood. This study presents a detailed northern hemisphere climatological analysis of large-scale patterns during 50 warm events of extreme wintertime (NDJFM) Arctic surface temperature anomalies, as defined by Messori et al. (2018), for the ERA-Interim period of 1979-2016. In contrast to the previous mentioned study, the main focus in this study is to relate the warm events with atmospheric blockings, identified as upper level anticyclonic PV anomalies following a dynamically-based blocking identification algorithm (Schwierz et al. 2004). In order to classify the events by their spatially and temporally varying blocking patterns, we calculate regional averages of the blocking frequencies for sector areas defined above 50 °N. General patterns and anomalies in meteorological variables in the different area clusters are quantified. Based on the blocking fractions for 90<sup>th</sup> and 95<sup>th</sup> percentiles, we can relate up to 80 % of the warm events to strong blockings. Additionally, we show that the remaining events obtain similar patterns, though with weaker or shorter-lived blocks. Overall, it can be conducted that almost all warm events in the clusters precede with a significant blocking located in the area around the Urals and the nearby parts of the Arctic Ocean. Despite the similarities found in the high Arctic for most of the events, there are different patterns identified in the periphery between the clusters. A North-Atlantic block is often found in the same cluster as with the Ural blocking, however with some temporal lag prior to the latter one. Therefore, the connection with the NAO-index during the warm events is also investigated. Our study gives a deeper insight into the large-scale patterns and emphasizes the importance of the large-scale settings prior to the Arctic warm events, primarily focusing on the importance of the atmospheric blockings. The formation of these blockings and the dynamical processes on different scales driving these warm events are further discussed using trajectory-analysis in an upcoming study. These two studies aim to improve the understanding of the preconditions needed for these Arctic warm events to occur and, furthermore, the mechanisms that control these events in high latitudes.</p><p> </p><p>Woods, C., Caballero, R., & Svensson, G. (2013). Large-scale circulation associated with moisture intrusions into the Arctic during winter. Geophysical Research Letters, 40(17), 4717-4721.</p><p>Wernli, H., & Papritz, L. (2018). Role of polar anticyclones and mid-latitude cyclones for Arctic summertime sea-ice melting. Nature Geoscience, 11(2), 108.</p><p>Messori, G., Woods, C., & Caballero, R. (2018). On the drivers of wintertime temperature extremes in the High Arctic. Journal of Climate, 31(4), 1597–1618.</p><p>Schwierz, C., Croci-Maspoli, M. & Davies, H. C. 2004). Perspicacious indicators of atmospheric blocking. Geophys. Res. Lett. 31, L06125.</p>


2015 ◽  
Vol 56 (69) ◽  
pp. 323-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.V. Lukovich ◽  
J.K. Hutchings ◽  
D.G. Barber

AbstractCentral to an understanding of evolution in sea-ice characteristics in response to climate change is an understanding of sea-ice dynamics. In this study, we investigate regional differences in ice dynamics in the Beaufort Sea and High Arctic using high-frequency ice buoy (beacon) data deployed during the SEDNA and IPY-CFL field campaigns from spring 2007 to winter 2008. Examined in particular are scaling laws determined from absolute dispersion statistics. We create temporal scaling maps to determine whether distinct dynamical regimes can be identified with differing scaling properties. The results from this analysis provide an alternative characterization to changes in sea ice based on dynamics rather than concentration and thickness, and thus insight into, and improved understanding of, the connections between sea-ice drift and morphology.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Ramírez ◽  
Arnaud Tarroux ◽  
Johanna Hovinen ◽  
Joan Navarro ◽  
Isabel Afán ◽  
...  

Abstract Spring sea ice phenology regulates the timing of the two consecutive pulses of marine autotrophs that form the base of the Arctic marine food webs. This timing has been suggested to be the single most essential driver of secondary production and the efficiency with which biomass and energy are transferred to higher trophic levels. We investigated the chronological sequence of productivity pulses and its potential cascading impacts on the reproductive performance of the High Arctic seabird community from Svalbard, Norway. We provide evidence that interannual changes in the seasonal patterns of marine productivity may impact the breeding performance of little auks and Brünnich’s guillemots. These results may be of particular interest given that current global warming trends in the Barents Sea region predict one of the highest rates of sea ice loss within the circumpolar Arctic. However, local- to regional-scale heterogeneity in sea ice melting phenology may add uncertainty to predictions of climate-driven environmental impacts on seabirds. Indeed, our fine-scale analysis reveals that the inshore Brünnich’s guillemots are facing a slower advancement in the timing of ice melt compared to the offshore-foraging little auks. We provide a suitable framework for analyzing the effects of climate-driven sea ice disappearance on seabird fitness.


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