Articles | Volume 16, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-355-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-355-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
24 Jan 2023
Research article |
| 24 Jan 2023
| 24 Jan 2023
Laser-induced sublimation extraction for centimeter-resolution multi-species greenhouse gas analysis on ice cores
Lars Mächler
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Daniel Baggenstos
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Antarctic Climate Program, Australian Antarctic Division, Kingston, 7050, Australia
Florian Krauss
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Jochen Schmitt
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Bernhard Bereiter
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Laboratory for Air Pollution/Environmental Technology, Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratory for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Remo Walther
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Christoph Reinhard
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Béla Tuzson
Laboratory for Air Pollution/Environmental Technology, Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratory for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Lukas Emmenegger
Laboratory for Air Pollution/Environmental Technology, Empa – Swiss Federal Laboratory for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Hubertus Fischer
Climate and Environmental Physics and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
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Susanne Preunkert, Pascal Bohleber, Michel Legrand, Adrien Gilbert, Tobias Erhardt, Roland Purtschert, Lars Zipf, Astrid Waldner, Joseph R. McConnell, and Hubertus Fischer
The Cryosphere, 18, 2177–2194, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2177-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-2177-2024, 2024
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Ice cores from high-elevation Alpine glaciers are an important tool to reconstruct the past atmosphere. However, since crevasses are common at these glacier sites, rigorous investigations of glaciological conditions upstream of drill sites are needed before interpreting such ice cores. On the basis of three ice cores extracted at Col du Dôme (4250 m a.s.l; French Alps), an overall picture of a dynamic crevasse formation is drawn, which disturbs the depth–age relation of two of the three cores.
Jakob Schwander, Thomas Franziskus Stocker, Remo Walther, Samuel Marending, Tobias Erhardt, Chantal Zeppenfeld, and Jürg Jost
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-372, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-372, 2024
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The RADIX optical dust logger is part of the exploratory 20-mm drilling system of the University of Bern. The logger is inserted into the borehole after drilling. The temperature, inclination and compass sensors were successfully tested, but not the dust sensor, because no RADIX hole reached down to the required bubble-free ice. In June 2023, we tested the logger with an adapter for the large East GRIP deep borehole. An excellent dust record was obtained for the Late Glacial/Holocene.
Tobias Erhardt, Camilla Marie Jensen, Florian Adolphi, Helle Astrid Kjær, Remi Dallmayr, Birthe Twarloh, Melanie Behrens, Motohiro Hirabayashi, Kaori Fukuda, Jun Ogata, François Burgay, Federico Scoto, Ilaria Crotti, Azzurra Spagnesi, Niccoló Maffezzoli, Delia Segato, Chiara Paleari, Florian Mekhaldi, Raimund Muscheler, Sophie Darfeuil, and Hubertus Fischer
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 5079–5091, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5079-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5079-2023, 2023
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The presented paper provides a 3.8 kyr long dataset of aerosol concentrations from the East Greenland Ice coring Project (EGRIP) ice core. The data consists of 1 mm depth-resolution profiles of calcium, sodium, ammonium, nitrate, and electrolytic conductivity as well as decadal averages of these profiles. Alongside the data a detailed description of the measurement setup as well as a discussion of the uncertainties are given.
Ioannis Katharopoulos, Dominique Rust, Martin K. Vollmer, Dominik Brunner, Stefan Reimann, Simon J. O'Doherty, Dickon Young, Kieran M. Stanley, Tanja Schuck, Jgor Arduini, Lukas Emmenegger, and Stephan Henne
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 14159–14186, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-14159-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-14159-2023, 2023
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The effectiveness of climate change mitigation needs to be scrutinized by monitoring greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Countries report their emissions to the UN in a bottom-up manner. By combining atmospheric observations and transport models someone can independently validate emission estimates in a top-down fashion. We report Swiss emissions of synthetic GHGs based on kilometer-scale transport and inverse modeling, highlighting the role of appropriate resolution in complex terrain.
Simone Brunamonti, Manuel Graf, Tobias Bühlmann, Céline Pascale, Ivan Ilak, Lukas Emmenegger, and Béla Tuzson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4391–4407, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4391-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4391-2023, 2023
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The abundance of water vapor (H2O) in the upper atmosphere has a significant impact on the rate of global warming. We developed a new lightweight spectrometer (ALBATROSS) for H2O measurements aboard meteorological balloons. Here, we assess the accuracy and precision of ALBATROSS using metrology-grade reference gases. The results demonstrate the exceptional potential of mid-infrared laser absorption spectroscopy as a new reference method for in situ measurements of H2O in the upper atmosphere.
Foteini Stavropoulou, Katarina Vinković, Bert Kers, Marcel de Vries, Steven van Heuven, Piotr Korbeń, Martina Schmidt, Julia Wietzel, Pawel Jagoda, Jaroslav M. Necki, Jakub Bartyzel, Hossein Maazallahi, Malika Menoud, Carina van der Veen, Sylvia Walter, Béla Tuzson, Jonas Ravelid, Randulph Paulo Morales, Lukas Emmenegger, Dominik Brunner, Michael Steiner, Arjan Hensen, Ilona Velzeboer, Pim van den Bulk, Hugo Denier van der Gon, Antonio Delre, Maklawe Essonanawe Edjabou, Charlotte Scheutz, Marius Corbu, Sebastian Iancu, Denisa Moaca, Alin Scarlat, Alexandru Tudor, Ioana Vizireanu, Andreea Calcan, Magdalena Ardelean, Sorin Ghemulet, Alexandru Pana, Aurel Constantinescu, Lucian Cusa, Alexandru Nica, Calin Baciu, Cristian Pop, Andrei Radovici, Alexandru Mereuta, Horatiu Stefanie, Alexandru Dandocsi, Bas Hermans, Stefan Schwietzke, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, Huilin Chen, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 10399–10412, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-10399-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-10399-2023, 2023
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In this study, we quantify CH4 emissions from onshore oil production sites in Romania at source and facility level using a combination of ground- and drone-based measurement techniques. We show that the total CH4 emissions in our studied areas are much higher than the emissions reported to UNFCCC, and up to three-quarters of the detected emissions are related to operational venting. Our results suggest that oil and gas production infrastructure in Romania holds a massive mitigation potential.
Sune Olander Rasmussen, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, Hubertus Fischer, Katrin Fuhrer, Steffen Bo Hansen, Margareta Hansson, Christine S. Hvidberg, Ulf Jonsell, Sepp Kipfstuhl, Urs Ruth, Jakob Schwander, Marie-Louise Siggaard-Andersen, Giulia Sinnl, Jørgen Peder Steffensen, Anders M. Svensson, and Bo M. Vinther
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 3351–3364, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3351-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3351-2023, 2023
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Timescales are essential for interpreting palaeoclimate data. The data series presented here were used for annual-layer identification when constructing the timescales named the Greenland Ice-Core Chronology 2005 (GICC05) and the revised version GICC21. Hopefully, these high-resolution data sets will be useful also for other purposes.
Michaela Mühl, Jochen Schmitt, Barbara Seth, James E. Lee, Jon S. Edwards, Edward J. Brook, Thomas Blunier, and Hubertus Fischer
Clim. Past, 19, 999–1025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-999-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-999-2023, 2023
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Our ice core measurements show that methane, ethane, and propane concentrations are significantly elevated above their past atmospheric background for Greenland ice samples containing mineral dust. The underlying co-production process happens during the classical discrete wet extraction of air from the ice sample and affects previous reconstructions of the inter-polar difference of methane as well as methane stable isotope records derived from dust-rich Greenland ice.
Robert Mulvaney, Eric W. Wolff, Mackenzie M. Grieman, Helene H. Hoffmann, Jack D. Humby, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Rachael H. Rhodes, Isobel F. Rowell, Frédéric Parrenin, Loïc Schmidely, Hubertus Fischer, Thomas F. Stocker, Marcus Christl, Raimund Muscheler, Amaelle Landais, and Frédéric Prié
Clim. Past, 19, 851–864, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-851-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-851-2023, 2023
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We present an age scale for a new ice core drilled at Skytrain Ice Rise, an ice rise facing the Ronne Ice Shelf in Antarctica. Various measurements in the ice and air phases are used to match the ice core to other Antarctic cores that have already been dated, and a new age scale is constructed. The 651 m ice core includes ice that is confidently dated to 117 000–126 000 years ago, in the last interglacial. Older ice is found deeper down, but there are flow disturbances in the deeper ice.
Christo Buizert, Sarah Shackleton, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, William H. G. Roberts, Alan Seltzer, Bernhard Bereiter, Kenji Kawamura, Daniel Baggenstos, Anaïs J. Orsi, Ikumi Oyabu, Benjamin Birner, Jacob D. Morgan, Edward J. Brook, David M. Etheridge, David Thornton, Nancy Bertler, Rebecca L. Pyne, Robert Mulvaney, Ellen Mosley-Thompson, Peter D. Neff, and Vasilii V. Petrenko
Clim. Past, 19, 579–606, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-579-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-579-2023, 2023
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It is unclear how different components of the global atmospheric circulation, such as the El Niño effect, respond to large-scale climate change. We present a new ice core gas proxy, called krypton-86 excess, that reflects past storminess in Antarctica. We present data from 11 ice cores that suggest the new proxy works. We present a reconstruction of changes in West Antarctic storminess over the last 24 000 years and suggest these are caused by north–south movement of the tropical rain belt.
Jakob Schwander, Thomas F. Stocker, Remo Walther, and Samuel Marending
The Cryosphere, 17, 1151–1164, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1151-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1151-2023, 2023
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RADIX (Rapid Access Drilling and Ice eXtraction) is a fast-access ice-drilling system for prospecting future deep-drilling sites on glaciers and polar ice sheets. It consists of a 40 mm rapid firn drill, a 20 mm deep drill and a logger. The maximum depth range of RADIX is 3100 m by design. The nominal drilling speed is on the order of 40 m h-1. The 15 mm diameter logger provides data on the hole inclination and direction and measures temperature and dust in the ice surrounding the borehole.
Michael N. Dyonisius, Vasilii V. Petrenko, Andrew M. Smith, Benjamin Hmiel, Peter D. Neff, Bin Yang, Quan Hua, Jochen Schmitt, Sarah A. Shackleton, Christo Buizert, Philip F. Place, James A. Menking, Ross Beaudette, Christina Harth, Michael Kalk, Heidi A. Roop, Bernhard Bereiter, Casey Armanetti, Isaac Vimont, Sylvia Englund Michel, Edward J. Brook, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Ray F. Weiss, and Joseph R. McConnell
The Cryosphere, 17, 843–863, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-843-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-843-2023, 2023
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Cosmic rays that enter the atmosphere produce secondary particles which react with surface minerals to produce radioactive nuclides. These nuclides are often used to constrain Earth's surface processes. However, the production rates from muons are not well constrained. We measured 14C in ice with a well-known exposure history to constrain the production rates from muons. 14C production in ice is analogous to quartz, but we obtain different production rates compared to commonly used estimates.
Simone M. Pieber, Béla Tuzson, Stephan Henne, Ute Karstens, Christoph Gerbig, Frank-Thomas Koch, Dominik Brunner, Martin Steinbacher, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10721–10749, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10721-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10721-2022, 2022
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Understanding regional greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere is a prerequisite to mitigate climate change. In this study, we investigated the regional contributions of carbon dioxide (CO2) at the location of the high Alpine observatory Jungfraujoch (JFJ, Switzerland, 3580 m a.s.l.). To this purpose, we combined receptor-oriented atmospheric transport simulations for CO2 concentration in the period 2009–2017 with stable carbon isotope (δ13C–CO2) information.
Eric W. Wolff, Hubertus Fischer, Tas van Ommen, and David A. Hodell
Clim. Past, 18, 1563–1577, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-1563-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-1563-2022, 2022
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Projects are underway to drill ice cores in Antarctica reaching 1.5 Myr back in time. Dating such cores will be challenging. One method is to match records from the new core against datasets from existing marine sediment cores. Here we explore the options for doing this and assess how well the ice and marine records match over the existing 800 000-year time period. We are able to recommend a strategy for using marine data to place an age scale on the new ice cores.
Randulph Morales, Jonas Ravelid, Katarina Vinkovic, Piotr Korbeń, Béla Tuzson, Lukas Emmenegger, Huilin Chen, Martina Schmidt, Sebastian Humbel, and Dominik Brunner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2177–2198, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2177-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2177-2022, 2022
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Mapping trace gas emission plumes using in situ measurements from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is an emerging and attractive possibility to quantify emissions from localized sources. We performed an extensive controlled-release experiment to develop an optimal quantification method and to determine the related uncertainties under various environmental and sampling conditions. Our approach was successful in quantifying local methane sources from drone-based measurements.
Tobias Erhardt, Matthias Bigler, Urs Federer, Gideon Gfeller, Daiana Leuenberger, Olivia Stowasser, Regine Röthlisberger, Simon Schüpbach, Urs Ruth, Birthe Twarloh, Anna Wegner, Kumiko Goto-Azuma, Takayuki Kuramoto, Helle A. Kjær, Paul T. Vallelonga, Marie-Louise Siggaard-Andersen, Margareta E. Hansson, Ailsa K. Benton, Louise G. Fleet, Rob Mulvaney, Elizabeth R. Thomas, Nerilie Abram, Thomas F. Stocker, and Hubertus Fischer
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 1215–1231, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-1215-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-1215-2022, 2022
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The datasets presented alongside this manuscript contain high-resolution concentration measurements of chemical impurities in deep ice cores, NGRIP and NEEM, from the Greenland ice sheet. The impurities originate from the deposition of aerosols to the surface of the ice sheet and are influenced by source, transport and deposition processes. Together, these records contain detailed, multi-parameter records of past climate variability over the last glacial period.
Jiamei Lin, Anders Svensson, Christine S. Hvidberg, Johannes Lohmann, Steffen Kristiansen, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, Jørgen Peder Steffensen, Sune Olander Rasmussen, Eliza Cook, Helle Astrid Kjær, Bo M. Vinther, Hubertus Fischer, Thomas Stocker, Michael Sigl, Matthias Bigler, Mirko Severi, Rita Traversi, and Robert Mulvaney
Clim. Past, 18, 485–506, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-485-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-485-2022, 2022
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We employ acidity records from Greenland and Antarctic ice cores to estimate the emission strength, frequency and climatic forcing for large volcanic eruptions from the last half of the last glacial period. A total of 25 volcanic eruptions are found to be larger than any eruption in the last 2500 years, and we identify more eruptions than obtained from geological evidence. Towards the end of the glacial period, there is a notable increase in volcanic activity observed for Greenland.
Dominique Rust, Ioannis Katharopoulos, Martin K. Vollmer, Stephan Henne, Simon O'Doherty, Daniel Say, Lukas Emmenegger, Renato Zenobi, and Stefan Reimann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 2447–2466, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-2447-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-2447-2022, 2022
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Artificial halocarbons contribute to ozone layer depletion and to global warming. We measured the atmospheric concentrations of halocarbons at the Beromünster tower, modelled the Swiss emissions, and compared the results to the internationally reported Swiss emissions inventory. For most of the halocarbons, we found good agreement, whereas one refrigerant might be overestimated in the inventory. In addition, we present first emission estimates of the newest types of halocarbons.
Sarah Shackleton, James A. Menking, Edward Brook, Christo Buizert, Michael N. Dyonisius, Vasilii V. Petrenko, Daniel Baggenstos, and Jeffrey P. Severinghaus
Clim. Past, 17, 2273–2289, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-2273-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-2273-2021, 2021
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In this study, we measure atmospheric noble gases trapped in ice cores to reconstruct ocean temperature during the last glaciation. Comparing the new reconstruction to other climate records, we show that the ocean reached its coldest temperatures before ice sheets reached maximum volumes and atmospheric CO2 reached its lowest concentrations. Ocean cooling played a major role in lowering atmospheric CO2 early in the glaciation, but it only played a minor role later.
Johannes Sutter, Hubertus Fischer, and Olaf Eisen
The Cryosphere, 15, 3839–3860, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3839-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3839-2021, 2021
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Projections of global sea-level changes in a warming world require ice-sheet models. We expand the calibration of these models by making use of the internal architecture of the Antarctic ice sheet, which is formed by its evolution over many millennia. We propose that using our novel approach to constrain ice sheet models, we will be able to both sharpen our understanding of past and future sea-level changes and identify weaknesses in the parameterisation of current continental-scale models.
Loïc Schmidely, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Jochen Schmitt, Juhyeong Han, Lucas Silva, Jinwha Shin, Fortunat Joos, Jérôme Chappellaz, Hubertus Fischer, and Thomas F. Stocker
Clim. Past, 17, 1627–1643, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1627-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1627-2021, 2021
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Using ancient gas trapped in polar glaciers, we reconstructed the atmospheric concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide over the penultimate deglaciation to study their response to major climate changes. We show this deglaciation to be characterized by modes of methane and nitrous oxide variability that are also found during the last deglaciation and glacial cycle.
Marcel Haeberli, Daniel Baggenstos, Jochen Schmitt, Markus Grimmer, Adrien Michel, Thomas Kellerhals, and Hubertus Fischer
Clim. Past, 17, 843–867, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-843-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-843-2021, 2021
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Using the temperature-dependent solubility of noble gases in ocean water, we reconstruct global mean ocean temperature (MOT) over the last 700 kyr using noble gas ratios in air enclosed in polar ice cores. Our record shows that glacial MOT was about 3 °C cooler compared to the Holocene. Interglacials before 450 kyr ago were characterized by about 1.5 °C lower MOT than the Holocene. In addition, some interglacials show transient maxima in ocean temperature related to changes in ocean circulation.
Stuart K. Grange, James D. Lee, Will S. Drysdale, Alastair C. Lewis, Christoph Hueglin, Lukas Emmenegger, and David C. Carslaw
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 4169–4185, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4169-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4169-2021, 2021
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The changes in mobility across Europe due to the COVID-19 lockdowns had consequences for air quality. We compare what was experienced to estimates of "what would have been" without the lockdowns. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), an important vehicle-sourced pollutant, decreased by a third. However, ozone (O3) increased in response to lower NO2. Because NO2 is decreasing over time, increases in O3 can be expected in European urban areas and will require management to avoid future negative outcomes.
Manuel Graf, Philipp Scheidegger, André Kupferschmid, Herbert Looser, Thomas Peter, Ruud Dirksen, Lukas Emmenegger, and Béla Tuzson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1365–1378, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1365-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1365-2021, 2021
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Water vapor is the most important natural greenhouse gas. The accurate and frequent measurement of its abundance, especially in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS), is technically challenging. We developed and characterized a mid-IR absorption spectrometer for highly accurate water vapor measurements in the UTLS. The instrument is sufficiently small and lightweight (3.9 kg) to be carried by meteorological balloons, which enables frequent and cost-effective soundings.
Bernhard Bereiter, Béla Tuzson, Philipp Scheidegger, André Kupferschmid, Herbert Looser, Lars Mächler, Daniel Baggenstos, Jochen Schmitt, Hubertus Fischer, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6391–6406, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6391-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6391-2020, 2020
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The record of past greenhouse gas composition from ice cores is crucial for our understanding of global climate change. Deciphering this archive requires highly accurate and spatially resolved analysis of the very small amount of gas that is trapped in the ice. This is achieved with a mid-IR laser absorption spectrometer that provides simultaneous, high-precision measurements of CH4, N2O, CO2, and δ13C(CO2) and which will be coupled to a quantitative sublimation extraction method.
Jinhwa Shin, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Roberto Grilli, Jai Chowdhry Beeman, Frédéric Parrenin, Grégory Teste, Amaelle Landais, Loïc Schmidely, Lucas Silva, Jochen Schmitt, Bernhard Bereiter, Thomas F. Stocker, Hubertus Fischer, and Jérôme Chappellaz
Clim. Past, 16, 2203–2219, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-2203-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-2203-2020, 2020
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We reconstruct atmospheric CO2 from the EPICA Dome C ice core during Marine Isotope Stage 6 (185–135 ka) to understand carbon mechanisms under the different boundary conditions of the climate system. The amplitude of CO2 is highly determined by the Northern Hemisphere stadial duration. Carbon dioxide maxima show different lags with respect to the corresponding abrupt CH4 jumps, the latter reflecting rapid warming in the Northern Hemisphere.
Jann Schrod, Dominik Kleinhenz, Maria Hörhold, Tobias Erhardt, Sarah Richter, Frank Wilhelms, Hubertus Fischer, Martin Ebert, Birthe Twarloh, Damiano Della Lunga, Camilla M. Jensen, Joachim Curtius, and Heinz G. Bingemer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 12459–12482, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12459-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-12459-2020, 2020
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Ice-nucleating particle (INP) concentrations of the last 6 centuries are presented from an ice core in Greenland. The data are accompanied by physical and chemical aerosol data. INPs are correlated to the dust signal from the ice core and seem to follow the annual input of mineral dust. We find no clear trend in the INP concentration. However, modern-day concentrations are higher and more variable than the concentrations of the past. This might have significant atmospheric implications.
Béla Tuzson, Manuel Graf, Jonas Ravelid, Philipp Scheidegger, André Kupferschmid, Herbert Looser, Randulph Paulo Morales, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 4715–4726, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-4715-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-4715-2020, 2020
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We describe a lightweight (2 kg) mid-IR laser spectrometer for airborne, in situ atmospheric methane (CH4) measurements. The instrument, based on an open-path circular multipass cell, provides fast response (1 Hz) and sub-parts-per-billion precision. It can easily be mounted on a drone, giving access to highly resolved 4D (spatial and temporal) data. The performance was assessed during field deployments involving artificial CH4 releases and vertical concentration gradients in the PBL.
Anders Svensson, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, Jørgen Peder Steffensen, Thomas Blunier, Sune O. Rasmussen, Bo M. Vinther, Paul Vallelonga, Emilie Capron, Vasileios Gkinis, Eliza Cook, Helle Astrid Kjær, Raimund Muscheler, Sepp Kipfstuhl, Frank Wilhelms, Thomas F. Stocker, Hubertus Fischer, Florian Adolphi, Tobias Erhardt, Michael Sigl, Amaelle Landais, Frédéric Parrenin, Christo Buizert, Joseph R. McConnell, Mirko Severi, Robert Mulvaney, and Matthias Bigler
Clim. Past, 16, 1565–1580, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-1565-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-1565-2020, 2020
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We identify signatures of large bipolar volcanic eruptions in Greenland and Antarctic ice cores during the last glacial period, which allows for a precise temporal alignment of the ice cores. Thereby the exact timing of unexplained, abrupt climatic changes occurring during the last glacial period can be determined in a global context. The study thus provides a step towards a full understanding of elements of the climate system that may also play an important role in the future.
Michael Müller, Peter Graf, Jonas Meyer, Anastasia Pentina, Dominik Brunner, Fernando Perez-Cruz, Christoph Hüglin, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 3815–3834, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-3815-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-3815-2020, 2020
Fortunat Joos, Renato Spahni, Benjamin D. Stocker, Sebastian Lienert, Jurek Müller, Hubertus Fischer, Jochen Schmitt, I. Colin Prentice, Bette Otto-Bliesner, and Zhengyu Liu
Biogeosciences, 17, 3511–3543, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3511-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3511-2020, 2020
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Results of the first globally resolved simulations of terrestrial carbon and nitrogen (N) cycling and N2O emissions over the past 21 000 years are compared with reconstructed N2O emissions. Modelled and reconstructed emissions increased strongly during past abrupt warming events. This evidence appears consistent with a dynamic response of biological N fixation to increasing N demand by ecosystems, thereby reducing N limitation of plant productivity and supporting a land sink for atmospheric CO2.
Longfei Yu, Eliza Harris, Stephan Henne, Sarah Eggleston, Martin Steinbacher, Lukas Emmenegger, Christoph Zellweger, and Joachim Mohn
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 6495–6519, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-6495-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-6495-2020, 2020
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We observed the isotopic composition of nitrous oxide in the unpolluted air at Jungfraujoch for 5 years. Our results indicate a clear seasonal pattern in the isotopic composition, corresponding with that in atmospheric nitrous oxide levels. This is most likely due to temporal variations in both emission processes and air mass sources for Jungfraujoch. Our findings are of importance to global nitrous oxide modelling and to better understanding of long-term trends in atmospheric nitrous oxide.
Stuart K. Grange, Hanspeter Lötscher, Andrea Fischer, Lukas Emmenegger, and Christoph Hueglin
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1867–1885, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1867-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1867-2020, 2020
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Black carbon (BC) is an important atmospheric pollutant and can be monitored by instruments called aethalometers. A pragmatic data processing technique called the
aethalometer modelcan be used to apportion aethalometer observations into traffic and woodburning components. We present an exploratory data analysis evaluating the aethalometer model and use the outputs for BC trend analysis across Switzerland. The aethalometer model's robustness and utility for such analyses is discussed.
Ece Satar, Peter Nyfeler, Bernhard Bereiter, Céline Pascale, Bernhard Niederhauser, and Markus Leuenberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 101–117, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-101-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-101-2020, 2020
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Good-quality measurements of atmospheric trace gases are only possible with regular calibrations and stable measurements from the standard cylinders. This study investigates instabilities due to surface effects on newly built aluminum and steel cylinders. We present measurements over a set of temperature and pressure ranges for the amount fractions of CO2, CO, CH4 and H2O using a commercial and a novel laser spectroscopic analyzer.
Christoph Zellweger, Rainer Steinbrecher, Olivier Laurent, Haeyoung Lee, Sumin Kim, Lukas Emmenegger, Martin Steinbacher, and Brigitte Buchmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 5863–5878, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5863-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5863-2019, 2019
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We analysed results obtained through CO and N2O performance audits conducted within the framework of the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) quality management system of the World Meteorology Organization (WMO). The results reveal that current spectroscopic measurement techniques have clear advantages with respect to data quality objectives compared to more traditional methods. Further, they allow for a smooth continuation of historic CO and N2O time series.
Hubertus Fischer, Jochen Schmitt, Michael Bock, Barbara Seth, Fortunat Joos, Renato Spahni, Sebastian Lienert, Gianna Battaglia, Benjamin D. Stocker, Adrian Schilt, and Edward J. Brook
Biogeosciences, 16, 3997–4021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3997-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3997-2019, 2019
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N2O concentrations were subject to strong variations accompanying glacial–interglacial but also rapid climate changes over the last 21 kyr. The sources of these N2O changes can be identified by measuring the isotopic composition of N2O in ice cores and using the distinct isotopic composition of terrestrial and marine N2O. We show that both marine and terrestrial sources increased from the last glacial to the Holocene but that only terrestrial emissions responded quickly to rapid climate changes.
Erkan Ibraim, Benjamin Wolf, Eliza Harris, Rainer Gasche, Jing Wei, Longfei Yu, Ralf Kiese, Sarah Eggleston, Klaus Butterbach-Bahl, Matthias Zeeman, Béla Tuzson, Lukas Emmenegger, Johan Six, Stephan Henne, and Joachim Mohn
Biogeosciences, 16, 3247–3266, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3247-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3247-2019, 2019
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Nitrous oxide (N2O) is an important greenhouse gas and the major stratospheric ozone-depleting substance; therefore, mitigation of anthropogenic N2O emissions is needed. To trace N2O-emitting source processes, in this study, we observed N2O isotopocules above an intensively managed grassland research site with a recently developed laser spectroscopy method. Our results indicate that the domain of denitrification or nitrifier denitrification was the major N2O source.
James A. Menking, Edward J. Brook, Sarah A. Shackleton, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Michael N. Dyonisius, Vasilii Petrenko, Joseph R. McConnell, Rachael H. Rhodes, Thomas K. Bauska, Daniel Baggenstos, Shaun Marcott, and Stephen Barker
Clim. Past, 15, 1537–1556, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1537-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1537-2019, 2019
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An ice core from Taylor Glacier, Antarctica, spans a period ~ 70 000 years ago when Earth entered the last ice age. Chemical analyses of the ice and air bubbles allow for an independent determination of the ages of the ice and gas bubbles. The difference between the age of the ice and the bubbles at any given depth, called ∆age, is unusually high in the Taylor Glacier core compared to the Taylor Dome ice core situated to the south. This implies a dramatic accumulation gradient between the sites.
Johannes Sutter, Hubertus Fischer, Klaus Grosfeld, Nanna B. Karlsson, Thomas Kleiner, Brice Van Liefferinge, and Olaf Eisen
The Cryosphere, 13, 2023–2041, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2023-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-13-2023-2019, 2019
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The Antarctic Ice Sheet may have played an important role in moderating the transition between warm and cold climate epochs over the last million years. We find that the Antarctic Ice Sheet grew considerably about 0.9 Myr ago, a time when ice-age–warm-age cycles changed from a
40 000 to a 100 000 year periodicity. Our findings also suggest that ice as old as 1.5 Myr still exists at the bottom of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet despite the major climate reorganisations in the past.
Tobias Erhardt, Emilie Capron, Sune Olander Rasmussen, Simon Schüpbach, Matthias Bigler, Florian Adolphi, and Hubertus Fischer
Clim. Past, 15, 811–825, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-811-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-811-2019, 2019
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The cause of the rapid warming events documented in proxy records across the Northern Hemisphere during the last glacial has been a long-standing puzzle in paleo-climate research. Here, we use high-resolution ice-core data from to cores in Greenland to investigate the progression during the onset of these events on multi-annual timescales to test their plausible triggers. We show that atmospheric circulation changes preceded the warming in Greenland and the collapse of the sea ice by a decade.
Jonas Beck, Michael Bock, Jochen Schmitt, Barbara Seth, Thomas Blunier, and Hubertus Fischer
Biogeosciences, 15, 7155–7175, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-7155-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-7155-2018, 2018
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Ice core concentration and stable isotope measurements of atmospheric CH4 give valuable insights into the CH4 cycle of the past. New carbon and hydrogen stable isotope CH4 data measured on ice from both Greenland and Antarctica over the Holocene allow us to draw conclusions on the methane emission processes. In particular, our results cast doubt on a hypothesis proposing early human land use to be responsible for the atmospheric methane concentration increase in the second half of the Holocene.
Florian Adolphi, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Tobias Erhardt, R. Lawrence Edwards, Hai Cheng, Chris S. M. Turney, Alan Cooper, Anders Svensson, Sune O. Rasmussen, Hubertus Fischer, and Raimund Muscheler
Clim. Past, 14, 1755–1781, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-1755-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-1755-2018, 2018
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The last glacial period was characterized by a number of rapid climate changes seen, for example, as abrupt warmings in Greenland and changes in monsoon rainfall intensity. However, due to chronological uncertainties it is challenging to know how tightly coupled these changes were. Here we exploit cosmogenic signals caused by changes in the Sun and Earth magnetic fields to link different climate archives and improve our understanding of the dynamics of abrupt climate change.
P. Morten Hundt, Michael Müller, Markus Mangold, Béla Tuzson, Philipp Scheidegger, Herbert Looser, Christoph Hüglin, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 2669–2681, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2669-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-2669-2018, 2018
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NO2 is a pollutant that regularly exceeds its limit values in European cities. We developed a compact, mobile laser spectrometer that measures NO2 concentrations and installed it on a tram in Zurich. Mobile operation resulted in NO2 concentration data with high spatio-temporal resolution. The data were validated against fixed air-quality monitoring sites and provided detailed insights into the spatio-temporal concentration distribution of NO2 in an urban environment.
Fabian Schoenenberger, Stephan Henne, Matthias Hill, Martin K. Vollmer, Giorgos Kouvarakis, Nikolaos Mihalopoulos, Simon O'Doherty, Michela Maione, Lukas Emmenegger, Thomas Peter, and Stefan Reimann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 18, 4069–4092, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-4069-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-4069-2018, 2018
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Anthropogenic halocarbon emissions contribute to stratospheric ozone depletion and global warming. We measured atmospheric halocarbons for 6 months on Crete to extend the coverage of the existing observation network to the Eastern Mediterranean. The derived emission estimates showed a contribution of 16.8 % (13.6–23.3 %) and 53.2 % (38.1–84.2 %) of this region to the total HFC and HCFC emissions of the analyzed European domain and a reduction of the underlying uncertainties by 40–80 %.
Masa Kageyama, Pascale Braconnot, Sandy P. Harrison, Alan M. Haywood, Johann H. Jungclaus, Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Jean-Yves Peterschmitt, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Samuel Albani, Patrick J. Bartlein, Chris Brierley, Michel Crucifix, Aisling Dolan, Laura Fernandez-Donado, Hubertus Fischer, Peter O. Hopcroft, Ruza F. Ivanovic, Fabrice Lambert, Daniel J. Lunt, Natalie M. Mahowald, W. Richard Peltier, Steven J. Phipps, Didier M. Roche, Gavin A. Schmidt, Lev Tarasov, Paul J. Valdes, Qiong Zhang, and Tianjun Zhou
Geosci. Model Dev., 11, 1033–1057, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-1033-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-1033-2018, 2018
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The Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project (PMIP) takes advantage of the existence of past climate states radically different from the recent past to test climate models used for climate projections and to better understand these climates. This paper describes the PMIP contribution to CMIP6 (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project, 6th phase) and possible analyses based on PMIP results, as well as on other CMIP6 projects.
Taku Umezawa, Carl A. M. Brenninkmeijer, Thomas Röckmann, Carina van der Veen, Stanley C. Tyler, Ryo Fujita, Shinji Morimoto, Shuji Aoki, Todd Sowers, Jochen Schmitt, Michael Bock, Jonas Beck, Hubertus Fischer, Sylvia E. Michel, Bruce H. Vaughn, John B. Miller, James W. C. White, Gordon Brailsford, Hinrich Schaefer, Peter Sperlich, Willi A. Brand, Michael Rothe, Thomas Blunier, David Lowry, Rebecca E. Fisher, Euan G. Nisbet, Andrew L. Rice, Peter Bergamaschi, Cordelia Veidt, and Ingeborg Levin
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 11, 1207–1231, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-1207-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-11-1207-2018, 2018
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Isotope measurements are useful for separating different methane sources. However, the lack of widely accepted standards and calibration methods for stable carbon and hydrogen isotopic ratios of methane in air has caused significant measurement offsets among laboratories. We conducted worldwide interlaboratory comparisons, surveyed the literature and assessed them systematically. This study may be of help in future attempts to harmonize data sets of isotopic composition of atmospheric methane.
Pascal Bohleber, Tobias Erhardt, Nicole Spaulding, Helene Hoffmann, Hubertus Fischer, and Paul Mayewski
Clim. Past, 14, 21–37, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-21-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-21-2018, 2018
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The Colle Gnifetti (CG) glacier is the only drilling site in the European Alps offering ice core records back to some 1000 years. We aim to fully exploit these unique long-term records by establishing a reliable long-term age scale and an improved ice core proxy interpretation for reconstructing temperature. Our findings reveal a site-specific temperature-related signal in the trends of the mineral dust proxy Ca2+ that may supplement other proxy evidence over the last millennium.
Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Pascale Braconnot, Sandy P. Harrison, Daniel J. Lunt, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Samuel Albani, Patrick J. Bartlein, Emilie Capron, Anders E. Carlson, Andrea Dutton, Hubertus Fischer, Heiko Goelzer, Aline Govin, Alan Haywood, Fortunat Joos, Allegra N. LeGrande, William H. Lipscomb, Gerrit Lohmann, Natalie Mahowald, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Francesco S. R. Pausata, Jean-Yves Peterschmitt, Steven J. Phipps, Hans Renssen, and Qiong Zhang
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 3979–4003, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-3979-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-3979-2017, 2017
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The PMIP4 and CMIP6 mid-Holocene and Last Interglacial simulations provide an opportunity to examine the impact of two different changes in insolation forcing on climate at times when other forcings were relatively similar to present. This will allow exploration of the role of feedbacks relevant to future projections. Evaluating these simulations using paleoenvironmental data will provide direct out-of-sample tests of the reliability of state-of-the-art models to simulate climate changes.
Frédéric Parrenin, Marie G. P. Cavitte, Donald D. Blankenship, Jérôme Chappellaz, Hubertus Fischer, Olivier Gagliardini, Valérie Masson-Delmotte, Olivier Passalacqua, Catherine Ritz, Jason Roberts, Martin J. Siegert, and Duncan A. Young
The Cryosphere, 11, 2427–2437, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2427-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-11-2427-2017, 2017
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The oldest dated deep ice core drilled in Antarctica has been retrieved at EPICA Dome C (EDC), reaching ~ 800 000 years. Obtaining an older palaeoclimatic record from Antarctica is one of the greatest challenges of the ice core community. Here, we estimate the age of basal ice in the Dome C area. We find that old ice (> 1.5 Myr) likely exists in two regions a few tens of kilometres away from EDC:
Little Dome C Patchand
North Patch.
Antoine Berchet, Katrin Zink, Dietmar Oettl, Jürg Brunner, Lukas Emmenegger, and Dominik Brunner
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 3441–3459, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-3441-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-3441-2017, 2017
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We evaluate a new cost-effective method to simulate pollutant dispersion at high resolution on a city-wide domain. The method is based on a catalogue of reference simulations matched to weather observations to produce a sequence of hourly pollution maps. A total of 2 years of simulations are compared with continuous measurements and passive NO2 samplers in the city of Zurich. Spatial and temporal variability proved to be very well reproduced by the method.
Yann Poltera, Giovanni Martucci, Martine Collaud Coen, Maxime Hervo, Lukas Emmenegger, Stephan Henne, Dominik Brunner, and Alexander Haefele
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 10051–10070, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-10051-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-10051-2017, 2017
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We present the PathfinderTURB algorithm for the analysis of ceilometer backscatter data and the real-time detection of the vertical structure of the planetary boundary layer. PathfinderTURB has been applied to 1 year of data measured by two ceilometers operated at two Swiss stations: the Aerological Observatory of Payerne on the Swiss plateau, and the Alpine Jungfraujoch observatory. The study shows that aerosols from the boundary layer significantly influence the air measured at Jungfraujoch.
Daniel Baggenstos, Thomas K. Bauska, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, James E. Lee, Hinrich Schaefer, Christo Buizert, Edward J. Brook, Sarah Shackleton, and Vasilii V. Petrenko
Clim. Past, 13, 943–958, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-13-943-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-13-943-2017, 2017
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We present measurements of the gas composition in trapped air bubbles in ice samples taken from Taylor Glacier, Antarctica. We can show that ice from the entire last glacial cycle (125 000 years ago to the present) is exposed at the surface of this glacier and that the atmospheric record contained in the air bubbles is well preserved. Taylor Glacier therefore provides an easily accessible archive of ancient ice that allows for studies of trace components that require large ice volumes.
Peter Köhler, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Jochen Schmitt, Thomas F. Stocker, and Hubertus Fischer
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 363–387, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-363-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-363-2017, 2017
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We document our best available data compilation of published ice core records of the greenhouse gases CO2, CH4, and N2O and recent measurements on firn air and atmospheric samples covering the time window from 156 000 years BP to the beginning of the year 2016 CE. A smoothing spline method is applied to translate the discrete and irregularly spaced data points into continuous time series. The radiative forcing for each greenhouse gas is computed using well-established, simple formulations.
Julien G. Anet, Martin Steinbacher, Laura Gallardo, Patricio A. Velásquez Álvarez, Lukas Emmenegger, and Brigitte Buchmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 6477–6492, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-6477-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-6477-2017, 2017
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There are less long-term surface ozone measurements on the Southern than on the Northern Hemisphere, which makes it difficult to thoroughly understand global ozone chemistry. We have analyzed a new, 20-year-long ozone dataset measured at 2200 m asl at El Tololo, Chile, and show that the annual cycle of ozone is mainly driven by ozone transport from the stratosphere to the troposphere. As well, we illustrate that the timing of the annual maximum is regressing to earlier in the year.
Michel Legrand, Joseph McConnell, Hubertus Fischer, Eric W. Wolff, Susanne Preunkert, Monica Arienzo, Nathan Chellman, Daiana Leuenberger, Olivia Maselli, Philip Place, Michael Sigl, Simon Schüpbach, and Mike Flannigan
Clim. Past, 12, 2033–2059, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-2033-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-2033-2016, 2016
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Here, we review previous attempts made to reconstruct past forest fire using chemical signals recorded in Greenland ice. We showed that the Greenland ice records of ammonium, found to be a good fire proxy, consistently indicate changing fire activity in Canada in response to past climatic conditions that occurred since the last 15 000 years, including the Little Ice Age and the last large climatic transition.
Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Pascale Braconnot, Sandy P. Harrison, Daniel J. Lunt, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Samuel Albani, Patrick J. Bartlein, Emilie Capron, Anders E. Carlson, Andrea Dutton, Hubertus Fischer, Heiko Goelzer, Aline Govin, Alan Haywood, Fortunat Joos, Allegra N. Legrande, William H. Lipscomb, Gerrit Lohmann, Natalie Mahowald, Christoph Nehrbass-Ahles, Jean-Yves Peterschmidt, Francesco S.-R. Pausata, Steven Phipps, and Hans Renssen
Clim. Past Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2016-106, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2016-106, 2016
Preprint retracted
Olivier Eicher, Matthias Baumgartner, Adrian Schilt, Jochen Schmitt, Jakob Schwander, Thomas F. Stocker, and Hubertus Fischer
Clim. Past, 12, 1979–1993, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1979-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1979-2016, 2016
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A new high-resolution total air content record over the NGRIP ice core, spanning 0.3–120 kyr is presented. In agreement with Antarctic ice cores, we find a strong local insolation signature but also 3–5 % decreases in total air content as a local response to Dansgaard–Oeschger events, which can only partly be explained by changes in surface pressure and temperature. Accordingly, a dynamic response of firnification to rapid climate changes on the Greenland ice sheet must have occurred.
Amaelle Landais, Valérie Masson-Delmotte, Emilie Capron, Petra M. Langebroek, Pepijn Bakker, Emma J. Stone, Niklaus Merz, Christoph C. Raible, Hubertus Fischer, Anaïs Orsi, Frédéric Prié, Bo Vinther, and Dorthe Dahl-Jensen
Clim. Past, 12, 1933–1948, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1933-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1933-2016, 2016
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The last lnterglacial (LIG; 116 000 to 129 000 years before present) surface temperature at the upstream Greenland NEEM deposition site is estimated to be warmer by +7 to +11 °C compared to the preindustrial period. We show that under such warm temperatures, melting of snow probably led to a significant surface melting. There is a paradox between the extent of the Greenland ice sheet during the LIG and the strong warming during this period that models cannot solve.
Christoph Zellweger, Lukas Emmenegger, Mohd Firdaus, Juha Hatakka, Martin Heimann, Elena Kozlova, T. Gerard Spain, Martin Steinbacher, Marcel V. van der Schoot, and Brigitte Buchmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 4737–4757, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-4737-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-4737-2016, 2016
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We compared instruments using more traditional techniques for measuring CO2 and CH4 at different stations of the Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) programme with a travelling instrument using a spectroscopic technique. Our results show that the newer analytical techniques have clear advantages over the traditional methods which will lead to the improved accuracy of atmospheric CO2 and CH4 measurement. The work was carried out in the framework of the GAW quality assurance/quality control system.
Thomas Röckmann, Simon Eyer, Carina van der Veen, Maria E. Popa, Béla Tuzson, Guillaume Monteil, Sander Houweling, Eliza Harris, Dominik Brunner, Hubertus Fischer, Giulia Zazzeri, David Lowry, Euan G. Nisbet, Willi A. Brand, Jaroslav M. Necki, Lukas Emmenegger, and Joachim Mohn
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 10469–10487, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-10469-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-10469-2016, 2016
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A dual isotope ratio mass spectrometric system (IRMS) and a quantum cascade laser absorption spectroscopy (QCLAS)-based technique were deployed at the Cabauw experimental site for atmospheric research (CESAR) in the Netherlands and performed in situ, high-frequency (approx. hourly) measurements for a period of more than 5 months, yielding a combined dataset with more than 2500 measurements of both δ13C and δD.
Stephan Henne, Dominik Brunner, Brian Oney, Markus Leuenberger, Werner Eugster, Ines Bamberger, Frank Meinhardt, Martin Steinbacher, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 16, 3683–3710, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-3683-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-16-3683-2016, 2016
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Greenhouse gas emissions can be assessed by "top-down" methods that combine atmospheric observations, a transport model and a mathematical optimisation framework. Here, we apply such a top-down method to the methane emissions of Switzerland, utilising observations from the recently installed CarboCount-CH network. Our Swiss total emissions largely agree with those of the national "bottom-up" inventory, whereas regional differences suggest lower than reported emissions from manure handling.
S. Eyer, B. Tuzson, M. E. Popa, C. van der Veen, T. Röckmann, M. Rothe, W. A. Brand, R. Fisher, D. Lowry, E. G. Nisbet, M. S. Brennwald, E. Harris, C. Zellweger, L. Emmenegger, H. Fischer, and J. Mohn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 263–280, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-263-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-263-2016, 2016
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We present a newly developed field-deployable, autonomous platform simultaneously measuring the three most abundant isotopologues of methane using mid-infrared laser absorption spectroscopy.
The instrument consists of a compact quantum cascade laser absorption spectrometer (QCLAS) coupled to a preconcentration unit, called TRace gas EXtractor (TREX).
The performance of this new in situ technique was investigated during a 2-week measurement campaign and compared to other techniques.
G. van der Wel, H. Fischer, H. Oerter, H. Meyer, and H. A. J. Meijer
The Cryosphere, 9, 1601–1616, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1601-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1601-2015, 2015
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The diffusion of the stable water isotope signal during firnification of snow is a temperature-dependent process. Therefore, past local temperatures can be derived from the differential diffusion length. In this paper we develop a new method for determining this quantity and compare it with the existing method. Both methods are applied to a large number of synthetic data sets to assess the precision and accuracy of the reconstruction and to a section of the Antarctic EDML ice core record.
J.-L. Tison, M. de Angelis, G. Littot, E. Wolff, H. Fischer, M. Hansson, M. Bigler, R. Udisti, A. Wegner, J. Jouzel, B. Stenni, S. Johnsen, V. Masson-Delmotte, A. Landais, V. Lipenkov, L. Loulergue, J.-M. Barnola, J.-R. Petit, B. Delmonte, G. Dreyfus, D. Dahl-Jensen, G. Durand, B. Bereiter, A. Schilt, R. Spahni, K. Pol, R. Lorrain, R. Souchez, and D. Samyn
The Cryosphere, 9, 1633–1648, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1633-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1633-2015, 2015
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The oldest paleoclimatic information is buried within the lowermost layers of deep ice cores. It is therefore essential to judge how deep these records remain unaltered. We study the bottom 60 meters of the EPICA Dome C ice core from central Antarctica to show that the paleoclimatic signal is only affected at the small scale (decimeters) in terms of some of the global ice properties. However our data suggest that the time scale has been considerably distorted by mechanical stretching.
B. Wolf, L. Merbold, C. Decock, B. Tuzson, E. Harris, J. Six, L. Emmenegger, and J. Mohn
Biogeosciences, 12, 2517–2531, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-2517-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-2517-2015, 2015
J. Schmitt, B. Seth, M. Bock, and H. Fischer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 2645–2665, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-2645-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-2645-2014, 2014
M. Bock, J. Schmitt, J. Beck, R. Schneider, and H. Fischer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 7, 1999–2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1999-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-7-1999-2014, 2014
M. Baumgartner, P. Kindler, O. Eicher, G. Floch, A. Schilt, J. Schwander, R. Spahni, E. Capron, J. Chappellaz, M. Leuenberger, H. Fischer, and T. F. Stocker
Clim. Past, 10, 903–920, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-10-903-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-10-903-2014, 2014
B. Bereiter, H. Fischer, J. Schwander, and T. F. Stocker
The Cryosphere, 8, 245–256, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-245-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-245-2014, 2014
S. Schüpbach, U. Federer, P. R. Kaufmann, S. Albani, C. Barbante, T. F. Stocker, and H. Fischer
Clim. Past, 9, 2789–2807, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2789-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2789-2013, 2013
R. Schneider, J. Schmitt, P. Köhler, F. Joos, and H. Fischer
Clim. Past, 9, 2507–2523, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2507-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2507-2013, 2013
H. Fischer, J. Severinghaus, E. Brook, E. Wolff, M. Albert, O. Alemany, R. Arthern, C. Bentley, D. Blankenship, J. Chappellaz, T. Creyts, D. Dahl-Jensen, M. Dinn, M. Frezzotti, S. Fujita, H. Gallee, R. Hindmarsh, D. Hudspeth, G. Jugie, K. Kawamura, V. Lipenkov, H. Miller, R. Mulvaney, F. Parrenin, F. Pattyn, C. Ritz, J. Schwander, D. Steinhage, T. van Ommen, and F. Wilhelms
Clim. Past, 9, 2489–2505, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2489-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2489-2013, 2013
P. Sturm, B. Tuzson, S. Henne, and L. Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 1659–1671, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1659-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1659-2013, 2013
J. Schmitt, B. Seth, M. Bock, C. van der Veen, L. Möller, C. J. Sapart, M. Prokopiou, T. Sowers, T. Röckmann, and H. Fischer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 1425–1445, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1425-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-1425-2013, 2013
B. Tuzson, K. Zeyer, M. Steinbacher, J. B. McManus, D. D. Nelson, M. S. Zahniser, and L. Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 927–936, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-927-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-927-2013, 2013
S. Zürcher, R. Spahni, F. Joos, M. Steinacher, and H. Fischer
Biogeosciences, 10, 1963–1981, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1963-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1963-2013, 2013
B. Bereiter, T. F. Stocker, and H. Fischer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 6, 251–262, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-251-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-251-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Gases | Technique: Laboratory Measurement | Topic: Instruments and Platforms
Extraction, purification, and clumped isotope analysis of methane (Δ13CDH3 and Δ12CD2H2) from sources and the atmosphere
Response of protonated, adduct, and fragmented ions in Vocus proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer (PTR-ToF-MS)
Characterization of the new BATCH Teflon chamber and on-line analysis of isomeric multifunctional photooxidation products
Absorption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by polymer tubing: implications for indoor air and use as a simple gas-phase volatility separation technique
A flexible device to produce a gas stream with a precisely controlled water vapour mixing ratio and isotope composition based on microdrop dispensing technology
Revision of an open-split-based dual-inlet system for elemental and isotope ratio mass spectrometers with a focus on clumped-isotope measurements
Characterisation of gaseous iodine species detection using the multi-scheme chemical ionisation inlet 2 with bromide and nitrate chemical ionisation methods
A novel inlet for enriching concentrations of reactive organic gases in low sampling flows
A versatile water vapor generation module for vapor isotope calibration and liquid isotope measurements
Ammonium CI-Orbitrap: a tool for characterizing the reactivity of oxygenated organic molecules
Characterizing the automatic radon flux transfer standard system Autoflux: laboratory calibration and field experiments
Influence of ozone and humidity on PTR-MS and GC-MS VOC measurements with and without a Na2S2O3 ozone scrubber
Ozone reactivity measurement of biogenic volatile organic compound emissions
Comparison of two photolytic calibration methods for nitrous acid
Measurement of enantiomer percentages for five monoterpenes from six conifer species by cartridge-tube-based passive sampling adsorption–thermal desorption (ps-ATD)
Identification, monitoring, and reaction kinetics of reactive trace species using time-resolved mid-infrared quantum cascade laser absorption spectroscopy: development, characterisation, and initial results for the CH2OO Criegee intermediate
Air pollution monitoring: development of ammonia (NH3) dynamic reference gas mixtures at nanomoles per mole levels to improve the lack of traceability of measurements
Formaldehyde and glyoxal measurement deploying a selected ion flow tube mass spectrometer (SIFT-MS)
Fragmentation inside proton-transfer-reaction-based mass spectrometers limits the detection of ROOR and ROOH peroxides
MULTICHARME: a modified Chernin-type multi-pass cell designed for IR and THz long-path absorption measurements in the CHARME atmospheric simulation chamber
Silicone tube humidity generator
A source for the continuous generation of pure and quantifiable HONO mixtures
Photochemical method for removing methane interference for improved gas analysis
A simulation chamber for absorption spectroscopy in planetary atmospheres
An automated system for trace gas flux measurements from plant foliage and other plant compartments
Simultaneous measurement of δ13C, δ18O and δ17O of atmospheric CO2 – performance assessment of a dual-laser absorption spectrometer
Measurement of iodine species and sulfuric acid using bromide chemical ionization mass spectrometers
A method for resolving changes in atmospheric He ∕ N2 as an indicator of fossil fuel extraction and stratospheric circulation
Application of chemical derivatization techniques combined with chemical ionization mass spectrometry to detect stabilized Criegee intermediates and peroxy radicals in the gas phase
Atomic emission detector with gas chromatographic separation and cryogenic pre-concentration (CryoTrap–GC–AED) for atmospheric trace gas measurements
New technique for high-precision, simultaneous measurements of CH4, N2O and CO2 concentrations; isotopic and elemental ratios of N2, O2 and Ar; and total air content in ice cores by wet extraction
High-precision laser spectrometer for multiple greenhouse gas analysis in 1 mL air from ice core samples
A thermal-dissociation–cavity ring-down spectrometer (TD-CRDS) for the detection of organic nitrates in gas and particle phases
Interference from alkenes in chemiluminescent NOx measurements
Calibration of an airborne HOx instrument using the All Pressure Altitude-based Calibrator for HOx Experimentation (APACHE)
Measurement of ammonia, amines and iodine compounds using protonated water cluster chemical ionization mass spectrometry
An instrument for in situ measurement of total ozone reactivity
Portable calibrator for NO based on the photolysis of N2O and a combined NO2∕NO∕O3 source for field calibrations of air pollution monitors
A new instrument for time-resolved measurement of HO2 radicals
Investigation of adsorption and desorption behavior of small-volume cylinders and its relevance for atmospheric trace gas analysis
Towards an understanding of surface effects: testing of various materials in a small volume measurement chamber and its relevance for atmospheric trace gas analysis
Stability of halocarbons in air samples stored in stainless- steel canisters
High-precision atmospheric oxygen measurement comparisons between a newly built CRDS analyzer and existing measurement techniques
Characterisation of the transfer of cluster ions through an atmospheric pressure interface time-of-flight mass spectrometer with hexapole ion guides
Addition of fast gas chromatography to selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry for analysis of individual monoterpenes in mixtures
Measurements of delays of gas-phase compounds in a wide variety of tubing materials due to gas–wall interactions
Effects of gas–wall interactions on measurements of semivolatile compounds and small polar molecules
Characterization of a commercial lower-cost medium-precision non-dispersive infrared sensor for atmospheric CO2 monitoring in urban areas
Evaluating the performance of five different chemical ionization techniques for detecting gaseous oxygenated organic species
Cavity-enhanced photoacoustic sensor based on a whispering-gallery-mode diode laser
Malavika Sivan, Thomas Röckmann, Carina van der Veen, and Maria Elena Popa
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 2687–2705, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2687-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2687-2024, 2024
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We have set up a measurement system for methane-clumped isotopologues. We have built an extraction and purification system to extract pure methane for these measurements, for samples of various origins, including atmospheric air, for which we need to process about 1000 L of air for one measurement. We report here the technical setup for extraction and measurements, as well as the calibration, and we give an overview of the samples measured so far.
Fangbing Li, Dan Dan Huang, Linhui Tian, Bin Yuan, Wen Tan, Liang Zhu, Penglin Ye, Douglas Worsnop, Ka In Hoi, Kai Meng Mok, and Yong Jie Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 2415–2427, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2415-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2415-2024, 2024
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The responses of protonated, adduct, and fragmented ions of 21 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were investigated with varying instrument settings and relative humidity (RH) in a Vocus proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometer (PTR-MS). The protonated ions of most VOCs studied show < 15 % variation in sensitivity, except for some long-chain aldehydes. The relationship between sensitivity and PTR rate constant is complicated by the influences from ion transmission and protonated ion fraction.
Finja Löher, Esther Borrás, Amalia Muñoz, and Anke Christine Nölscher
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-531, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-531, 2024
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We constructed and characterized a new indoor Teflon atmospheric simulation chamber. We evaluated wall losses, photolysis rates, and secondary reactions of multifunctional VOC photooxidation products in the chamber. Two on-line analytical methods (SPME-GC-MS, PTR-ToF-MS) were used for gaining isomeric information and high temporal resolution data. These data were combined and cross-compared. For method validation, we studied the formation yields of the main ring-retaining products of toluene.
Melissa A. Morris, Demetrios Pagonis, Douglas A. Day, Joost A. de Gouw, Paul J. Ziemann, and Jose L. Jimenez
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 1545–1559, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1545-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1545-2024, 2024
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Polymer absorption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is important to characterize for atmospheric sampling setups (as interactions cause sampling delays) and indoor air quality. Here we test different polymer materials and quantify their absorptive capacities through modeling. We found the main polymers in carpets to be highly absorptive, acting as large reservoirs for indoor pollution. We also demonstrated how polymer tubes can be used as a low-cost gas separation technique.
Harald Sodemann, Alena Dekhtyareva, Alvaro Fernandez, Andrew Seidl, and Jenny Maccali
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5181–5203, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5181-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5181-2023, 2023
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We describe a device that allows one to produce a continuous stream of water vapour with a specified level of humidity. As a main innovation, we can mix waters with different water isotope composition. Through a series of tests we show that the performance characteristics of the device are in line with specifications. We present two laboratory applications where the device proves useful, first in characterizing instruments, and second for the analysis of water contained in stalagmites.
Stephan Räss, Peter Nyfeler, Paul Wheeler, Will Price, and Markus Christian Leuenberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4489–4505, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4489-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4489-2023, 2023
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Due to technological advances clumped-isotope studies have gained importance in recent years. Typically, these studies are performed with high-resolution isotope ratio mass spectrometers (IRMSs) along with a changeover-valve-based dual-inlet system (DIS). We are taking a different approach, namely performing clumped-isotope measurements with a compact low-resolution IRMS with an open-split-based DIS. Currently, we are working with pure-oxygen gas for which we are providing a proof of concept.
Xu-Cheng He, Jiali Shen, Siddharth Iyer, Paxton Juuti, Jiangyi Zhang, Mrisha Koirala, Mikko M. Kytökari, Douglas R. Worsnop, Matti Rissanen, Markku Kulmala, Norbert M. Maier, Jyri Mikkilä, Mikko Sipilä, and Juha Kangasluoma
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4461–4487, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4461-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4461-2023, 2023
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In this study, the upgraded multi-scheme chemical ionisation inlet 2 is presented. Sulfuric acid, hypoiodous acid, iodine, sulfur dioxide, and hydroperoxyl radicals are calibrated, and the improved ion optics allow us to detect sulfuric acid and iodine-containing molecules at as low as a few parts per quadrillion by volume. Additionally, we confirm the reliable detection of iodic acid using both the nitrate and bromide chemical ionisation methods under atmospherically relevant conditions.
Namrata Shanmukh Panji and Gabriel Isaacman-VanWertz
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4319–4330, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4319-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4319-2023, 2023
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Measuring volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the atmosphere is crucial for understanding air quality and environmental impact. Since these compounds are present in low concentrations, preconcentration of samples is often necessary for accurate detection. To address this issue, we have developed a novel inlet that uses selective permeation to concentrate organic gases in small sample flows. This device offers a promising approach for accurately detecting low levels of VOCs in the atmosphere.
Hans Christian Steen-Larsen and Daniele Zannoni
Atmos. Meas. Tech. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2023-160, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2023-160, 2023
Revised manuscript accepted for AMT
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The water vapor generation module is completely scalable allowing autonomous calibrations to use N standards and measurements to use an integration time only restricted by sample availability. Using this module, we document an improved reproducibility in 17O-excess liquid measurements of nearly a factor two compared to previously reported measurement capabilities using laser spectroscopy analyzers. This improvement is making spectroscopy measurements comparable isotope-ratio mass spectrometry.
Dandan Li, Dongyu Wang, Lucia Caudillo, Wiebke Scholz, Mingyi Wang, Sophie Tomaz, Guillaume Marie, Mihnea Surdu, Elias Eccli, Xianda Gong, Loic Gonzalez-Carracedo, Manuel Granzin, Joschka Pfeifer, Birte Rörup, Benjamin Schulze, Pekka Rantala, Sébastien Perrier, Armin Hansel, Joachim Curtius, Jasper Kirkby, Neil M. Donahue, Christian George, Imad El-Haddad, and Matthieu Riva
Atmos. Meas. Tech. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2023-149, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2023-149, 2023
Revised manuscript accepted for AMT
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Due to various analytical challenges in measuring organic vapors, it remains challenging to identify and quantify organic molecules present in the atmosphere, Here, we explore the performance of the chemical ionization Orbitrap mass spectrometer (CI-Orbitrap) using ammonium ion chemistry. This study shows that ammonium ion-based chemistry associated with the high mass resolving power of the Orbitrap mass analyzer can measure almost all-inclusive compounds.
Claudia Grossi, Daniel Rabago, Scott Chambers, Carlos Sáinz, Roger Curcoll, Peter P. S. Otáhal, Eliška Fialová, Luis Quindos, and Arturo Vargas
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2655–2672, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2655-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2655-2023, 2023
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The automatic and low-maintenance radon flux system Autoflux, completed with environmental soil and atmosphere sensors, has been theoretically and experimentally characterized and calibrated under laboratory conditions to be used as transfer standard for in situ measurements. It will offer for the first time long-term measurements to validate radon flux maps used by the climate and the radiation protection communities for assessing the radon gas emissions in the atmosphere.
Lisa Ernle, Monika Akima Ringsdorf, and Jonathan Williams
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1179–1194, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1179-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1179-2023, 2023
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Atmospheric ozone can induce artefacts in volatile organic compound measurements. Laboratory tests were made using GC-MS and PTR-MS aircraft systems under tropospheric and stratospheric conditions of humidity and ozone, with and without sodium thiosulfate filter scrubbers. Ozone in dry air produces some carbonyls and degrades alkenes. The scrubber lifetime depends on ozone concentration, flow rate and humidity. For the troposphere with scrubber, no significant artefacts were found over 14 d.
Detlev Helmig, Alex Guenther, Jacques Hueber, Ryan Daly, Wei Wang, Jeong-Hoo Park, Anssi Liikanen, and Arnaud P. Praplan
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5439–5454, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5439-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5439-2022, 2022
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This research demonstrates a new method for determination of the chemical reactivity of volatile organic compounds that are emitted from the leaves and needles of trees. These measurements allow elucidating if and how much of these emissions and their associated reactivity are captured and quantified by currently applicable chemical analysis methods.
Andrew J. Lindsay and Ezra C. Wood
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5455–5464, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5455-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5455-2022, 2022
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Nitrous acid (HONO) is an important source of the main atmospheric oxidant – the hydroxyl radical (OH). Advances in nitrous acid measurement techniques and calibration methods therefore improve our understanding of atmospheric oxidation processes. In this paper, we present two calibration methods based on photo-dissociating water vapor. These calibration methods are useful alternatives to conventional calibrations that involve a reacting hydrogen chloride vapor with sodium nitrite.
Ying Wang, Wentai Luo, Todd N. Rosenstiel, and James F. Pankow
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4651–4661, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4651-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4651-2022, 2022
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A rapid, sensitive, and precise analytical method was developed for measuring the fractional amounts of the (−) and (+) forms of chiral enantiomeric forms of monoterpenes in air containing biogenic plant emissions. The method uses passive air sampling onto adsorption–thermal desorption (ATD) gas sampling cartridge tubes; this is followed by automatable thermal desorption onto a chiral gas chromatography (GC) column, followed by detection with mass spectrometry (MS).
Zara S. Mir, Matthew Jamieson, Nicholas R. Greenall, Paul W. Seakins, Mark A. Blitz, and Daniel Stone
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2875–2887, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2875-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2875-2022, 2022
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In this work we describe the development and characterisation of an experiment using laser flash photolysis coupled with time-resolved mid-infrared (mid-IR) quantum cascade laser (QCL) absorption spectroscopy, with initial results reported for measurements of the infrared spectrum, kinetics, and product yields for the reaction of the CH2OO Criegee intermediate with SO2. This work has significance for the identification and measurement of reactive trace species in complex systems.
Tatiana Macé, Maitane Iturrate-Garcia, Céline Pascale, Bernhard Niederhauser, Sophie Vaslin-Reimann, and Christophe Sutour
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2703–2718, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2703-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2703-2022, 2022
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LNE developed, with the company 2M PROCESS, a gas reference generator to dynamically generate NH3 reference gas mixtures in the air at very low fractions between 1 and 400 nmol/mol. The procedure defined by LNE for calibrating NH3 analyzers used for monitoring air quality guarantees relative expanded uncertainties lower than 2 % for this measurement range. The results of a comparison organized between METAS and LNE allowed the validation of LNE's reference generator and calibration procedure.
Antonia G. Zogka, Manolis N. Romanias, and Frederic Thevenet
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2001–2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2001-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2001-2022, 2022
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We emphasize the application of SIFT-MS to detect two important atmospheric pollutants, i.e., formaldehyde (FM) and glyoxal (GL). FM and GL are secondary products formed by volatile organic compound oxidation in indoor and outdoor environments and play a key role in air quality and climate. We show that SIFT-MS is able to monitor these species selectively and in real time, overcoming the limitations of other, classical analytical techniques used to monitor these species in the atmosphere.
Haiyan Li, Thomas Golin Almeida, Yuanyuan Luo, Jian Zhao, Brett B. Palm, Christopher D. Daub, Wei Huang, Claudia Mohr, Jordan E. Krechmer, Theo Kurtén, and Mikael Ehn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1811–1827, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1811-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1811-2022, 2022
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This work evaluated the potential for PTR-based mass spectrometers to detect ROOR and ROOH peroxides both experimentally and through computations. Laboratory experiments using a Vocus PTR observed only noisy signals of potential dimers during α-pinene ozonolysis and a few small signals of dimeric compounds during cyclohexene ozonolysis. Quantum chemical calculations for model ROOR and ROOH systems showed that most of these peroxides should fragment partially following protonation.
Jean Decker, Éric Fertein, Jonas Bruckhuisen, Nicolas Houzel, Pierre Kulinski, Bo Fang, Weixiong Zhao, Francis Hindle, Guillaume Dhont, Robin Bocquet, Gaël Mouret, Cécile Coeur, and Arnaud Cuisset
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1201–1215, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1201-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1201-2022, 2022
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We present a multiple pass system developed for the CHamber for Atmospheric Reactivity and Metrology of the Environment. This multi-pass cell allows monitoring of atmospheric species at trace levels by high-resolution spectroscopy with long interaction path lengths in the IR and for the first time in the terahertz range. Interesting prospects are highlighted in this frequency domain, such as a high degree of selectivity or the possibility to monitor in real-time atmospheric processes.
Robert F. Berg, Nicola Chiodo, and Eric Georgin
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 819–832, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-819-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-819-2022, 2022
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We made a humidity generator that adds water vapor to a flowing gas. Its range of humidity is useful for calibrating balloon-borne probes to the Earth's stratosphere. The generator’s novel feature is a saturator that comprises 5 m of silicone tubing immersed in water. The length was enough to ensure that the saturator’s output was independent of the dimensions and permeability of the tube. This simple, low-cost design provides an accuracy that is acceptable for many applications.
Guillermo Villena and Jörg Kleffmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 627–637, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-627-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-627-2022, 2022
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A continuous source for the generation of pure HONO mixtures was developed and characterized, which is based on the Henry's law solubility of HONO in acidic aqueous solutions. The source shows a fast time response and an excellent long-term stability and can be easily adjusted to HONO mixing ratios in the range 0.05–500 ppb. A general equation based on Henry's law is developed, whereby the HONO concentration of the source can be absolutely calculated with an accuracy of better than 10 %.
Merve Polat, Jesper Baldtzer Liisberg, Morten Krogsbøll, Thomas Blunier, and Matthew S. Johnson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 8041–8067, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-8041-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-8041-2021, 2021
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We have designed a process for removing methane from a gas stream so that nitrous oxide can be measured without interference. These are both key long-lived greenhouse gases frequently studied in relation to ice cores, plants, water treatment and so on. However, many researchers are not aware of the problem of methane interference, and in addition there have not been good methods available for solving the problem. Here we present and evaluate such a method.
Marcel Snels, Stefania Stefani, Angelo Boccaccini, David Biondi, and Giuseppe Piccioni
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7187–7197, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7187-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7187-2021, 2021
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A novel simulation chamber, PASSxS (Planetary Atmosphere Simulation System for Spectroscopy), has been developed for absorption measurements with a Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) and possibly a cavity ring-down (CRD) spectrometer, with a sample temperature ranging from 100 K up to 550 K, while the pressure of the gas can be varied up to 60 bar. These temperature and pressure ranges cover a significant part of the planetary atmospheres in the solar system and possibly extrasolar planets.
Lukas Kohl, Markku Koskinen, Tatu Polvinen, Salla Tenhovirta, Kaisa Rissanen, Marjo Patama, Alessandro Zanetti, and Mari Pihlatie
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4445–4460, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4445-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4445-2021, 2021
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We present ShoTGa-FluMS, a measurement system designed for continuous and automated measurements of trace gas and volatile organic compound (VOC) fluxes from plant shoots. ShoTGa-FluMS uses transparent shoot enclosures equipped with cooling elements, automatically replaces fixated CO2, and removes transpired water from the enclosure, thus solving multiple technical problems that have so far prevented automated plant shoot trace gas flux measurements.
Pharahilda M. Steur, Hubertus A. Scheeren, Dave D. Nelson, J. Barry McManus, and Harro A. J. Meijer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4279–4304, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4279-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4279-2021, 2021
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For understanding the sources and sinks of atmospheric CO2, measurement of stable isotopes has proven to be highly valuable. We present a new method using laser absorption spectroscopy to simultaneously conduct measurements of three CO2 isotopes, directly on dry-air samples. This new method reduces sample preparation time significantly, compared to the conventional method in which measurements are conducted on pure CO2, and avoids measurement biases introduced by CO2 extraction.
Mingyi Wang, Xu-Cheng He, Henning Finkenzeller, Siddharth Iyer, Dexian Chen, Jiali Shen, Mario Simon, Victoria Hofbauer, Jasper Kirkby, Joachim Curtius, Norbert Maier, Theo Kurtén, Douglas R. Worsnop, Markku Kulmala, Matti Rissanen, Rainer Volkamer, Yee Jun Tham, Neil M. Donahue, and Mikko Sipilä
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4187–4202, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4187-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4187-2021, 2021
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Atmospheric iodine species are often short-lived with low abundance and have thus been challenging to measure. We show that the bromide chemical ionization mass spectrometry, compatible with both the atmospheric pressure and reduced pressure interfaces, can simultaneously detect various gas-phase iodine species. Combining calibration experiments and quantum chemical calculations, we quantify detection sensitivities to HOI, HIO3, I2, and H2SO4, giving detection limits down to < 106 molec. cm-3.
Benjamin Birner, William Paplawsky, Jeffrey Severinghaus, and Ralph F. Keeling
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 2515–2527, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-2515-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-2515-2021, 2021
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The atmospheric helium-to-nitrogen ratio is a promising indicator for circulation changes in the upper atmosphere and fossil fuel burning by humans. We present a very precise analysis method to determine changes in the helium-to-nitrogen ratio of air samples. The method relies on stabilizing the gas flow to a mass spectrometer and continuous removal of reactive gases. These advances enable new insights and monitoring possibilities for anthropogenic and natural processes.
Alexander Zaytsev, Martin Breitenlechner, Anna Novelli, Hendrik Fuchs, Daniel A. Knopf, Jesse H. Kroll, and Frank N. Keutsch
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 2501–2513, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-2501-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-2501-2021, 2021
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We have developed an online method for speciated measurements of organic peroxy radicals and stabilized Criegee intermediates using chemical derivatization combined with chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Chemical derivatization prevents secondary radical reactions and eliminates potential interferences. Comparison between our measurements and results from numeric modeling shows that the method can be used for the quantification of a wide range of atmospheric radicals and intermediates.
Einar Karu, Mengze Li, Lisa Ernle, Carl A. M. Brenninkmeijer, Jos Lelieveld, and Jonathan Williams
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1817–1831, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1817-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1817-2021, 2021
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A gas measurement device was developed to measure trace gases (ppt level) in the air based on an atomic emission detector. It combines a cryogenic pre-concentrator (CryoTrap), a gas chromatograph (GC), and a new high-resolution atomic emission detector (AED). The CryoTrap–GC–AED instrumental setup, limits of detection, and elemental performance are presented and discussed. Two measurement case studies are reported: one in a Finnish boreal forest and the other based on an aircraft campaign.
Ikumi Oyabu, Kenji Kawamura, Kyotaro Kitamura, Remi Dallmayr, Akihiro Kitamura, Chikako Sawada, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, Ross Beaudette, Anaïs Orsi, Satoshi Sugawara, Shigeyuki Ishidoya, Dorthe Dahl-Jensen, Kumiko Goto-Azuma, Shuji Aoki, and Takakiyo Nakazawa
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6703–6731, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6703-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6703-2020, 2020
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Air in polar ice cores provides information on past atmosphere and climate. We present a new method for simultaneously measuring eight gases (CH4, N2O and CO2 concentrations; isotopic ratios of N2 and O2; elemental ratios between N2, O2 and Ar; and total air content) from single ice-core samples with high precision.
Bernhard Bereiter, Béla Tuzson, Philipp Scheidegger, André Kupferschmid, Herbert Looser, Lars Mächler, Daniel Baggenstos, Jochen Schmitt, Hubertus Fischer, and Lukas Emmenegger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6391–6406, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6391-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6391-2020, 2020
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The record of past greenhouse gas composition from ice cores is crucial for our understanding of global climate change. Deciphering this archive requires highly accurate and spatially resolved analysis of the very small amount of gas that is trapped in the ice. This is achieved with a mid-IR laser absorption spectrometer that provides simultaneous, high-precision measurements of CH4, N2O, CO2, and δ13C(CO2) and which will be coupled to a quantitative sublimation extraction method.
Natalie I. Keehan, Bellamy Brownwood, Andrey Marsavin, Douglas A. Day, and Juliane L. Fry
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6255–6269, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6255-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6255-2020, 2020
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This paper describes a new instrument (a thermal-dissociation–cavity ring-down spectrometer, TD-CRDS) for the measurement of key atmospheric gaseous and particle-phase molecules containing the nitrate functional group. Several operational considerations affecting the measurements are described, as well as several characterization experiments comparing the TD-CRDS measurements to analogous measurements from other instruments. Examples are given using a TD-CRDS for ambient and laboratory studies.
Mohammed S. Alam, Leigh R. Crilley, James D. Lee, Louisa J. Kramer, Christian Pfrang, Mónica Vázquez-Moreno, Milagros Ródenas, Amalia Muñoz, and William J. Bloss
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5977–5991, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5977-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5977-2020, 2020
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We report on the interference arising in measurements of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from the presence of a range of alkenes in sampled air when using the most widespread air quality monitoring technique for chemiluminescence detection. Interferences of up to 11 % are reported, depending upon the alkene present and conditions used. Such interferences may be of substantial importance for the interpretation of ambient NOx data, particularly for high volatile organic compound and low NOx environments.
Daniel Marno, Cheryl Ernest, Korbinian Hens, Umar Javed, Thomas Klimach, Monica Martinez, Markus Rudolf, Jos Lelieveld, and Hartwig Harder
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2711–2731, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2711-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2711-2020, 2020
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In this study, a calibration device for OH and HO2 instruments is characterized at pressures of 275 to 1000 mbar, allowing instrument pressure sensitivity to be quantified to an accuracy of 22 % (1σ). Computational fluid dynamic simulations supporting the understanding of interactions between generated HOx and the instrument inlet led to enhanced determination of factors affecting instrument sensitivity.
Joschka Pfeifer, Mario Simon, Martin Heinritzi, Felix Piel, Lena Weitz, Dongyu Wang, Manuel Granzin, Tatjana Müller, Steffen Bräkling, Jasper Kirkby, Joachim Curtius, and Andreas Kürten
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2501–2522, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2501-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2501-2020, 2020
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Ammonia is an important atmospheric trace gas that affects secondary aerosol formation and, together with sulfuric acid, the formation of new particles. A measurement technique is presented that uses high-resolution mass spectrometry and protonated water clusters for the ultrasensitive detection of ammonia at single-digit parts per trillion by volume levels. The instrument is further capable of measuring amines and a suite of iodine compounds at sub-parts per trillion by volume levels.
Roberto Sommariva, Louisa J. Kramer, Leigh R. Crilley, Mohammed S. Alam, and William J. Bloss
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1655–1670, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1655-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1655-2020, 2020
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Ozone is a key atmospheric pollutant formed through chemical processing of natural and anthropogenic emissions and removed by reaction with organic compounds emitted by plants. We describe a new instrument – the
Total Ozone Reactivity Systemor TORS – that measures the total loss of ozone in the troposphere. The objective of the TORS instrument is to provide an estimate of the organic compounds emitted by plants which are not measured and thus to improve our understanding of the ozone budget.
John W. Birks, Andrew A. Turnipseed, Peter C. Andersen, Craig J. Williford, Stanley Strunk, Brian Carpenter, and Christine A. Ennis
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1001–1018, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1001-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1001-2020, 2020
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We describe a portable calibration source of nitric oxide (NO) based on the photolysis of nitrous oxide. Combining this with a previous photolytic ozone (O3) source yields a calibrator that produces known mixing ratios of NO, O3, and nitrogen dioxide (NO2); NO2 is produced by the reaction of NO with O3. This portable
NO2/NO/O3 calibration source requires no external gas cylinders and can be used as a standard to calibrate O3 and NOx air pollution monitors in the field.
Thomas H. Speak, Mark A. Blitz, Daniel Stone, and Paul W. Seakins
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 839–852, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-839-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-839-2020, 2020
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OH and HO2 radicals are important trace constituents of the atmosphere that are closely coupled via several types of reaction. This paper describes a new laboratory method to simultaneously determine OH kinetics and HO2 yields from chemical processes. The instrument also provides some time resolution on HO2 detection allowing one to separate HO2 produced from the target reaction from HO2 arising from secondary chemistry. Examples of applications are presented.
Ece Satar, Peter Nyfeler, Bernhard Bereiter, Céline Pascale, Bernhard Niederhauser, and Markus Leuenberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 101–117, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-101-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-101-2020, 2020
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Good-quality measurements of atmospheric trace gases are only possible with regular calibrations and stable measurements from the standard cylinders. This study investigates instabilities due to surface effects on newly built aluminum and steel cylinders. We present measurements over a set of temperature and pressure ranges for the amount fractions of CO2, CO, CH4 and H2O using a commercial and a novel laser spectroscopic analyzer.
Ece Satar, Peter Nyfeler, Céline Pascale, Bernhard Niederhauser, and Markus Leuenberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 119–130, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-119-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-119-2020, 2020
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To ensure the best preparation and measurement conditions for trace gases, usage of coated materials is in demand in gas metrology and atmospheric measurement communities. In this article, the previously introduced aluminum measurement chamber is used to investigate materials such as glass, aluminum, copper, brass, steel and three different commercially available coatings. Our measurements focus on temperature and pressure dependencies for the species CO2, CO, CH4 and H2O using a CRDS analyzer.
Tanja J. Schuck, Ann-Katrin Blank, Elisa Rittmeier, Jonathan Williams, Carl A. M. Brenninkmeijer, Andreas Engel, and Andreas Zahn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 73–84, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-73-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-73-2020, 2020
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Air sample collection aboard aircraft is a tool to measure atmospheric trace gas mixing ratios at altitude. We present results on the stability of 28 halocarbons during storage of air samples collected in stainless-steel flasks inside an automated air sampling unit which is part of the CARIBIC instrument package. Selected fluorinated compounds grew during the experiments while short-lived compounds were depleted. Individual substances were additionally influenced by high mixing ratios of ozone.
Tesfaye A. Berhanu, John Hoffnagle, Chris Rella, David Kimhak, Peter Nyfeler, and Markus Leuenberger
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 6803–6826, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6803-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-6803-2019, 2019
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Accurate measurement of variations in atmospheric O2 can provide useful information about atmospheric, biospheric, and oceanic processes, which is a challenge for existing measurement techniques. Here, we introduce a newly built high-precision, stable CRDS analyzer (Picarro G2207) that can measure O2 mixing ratios with a short-term precision of < 1 ppm and only requires calibration every 12 h. Measurements from tower and mountain sites are also presented.
Markus Leiminger, Stefan Feil, Paul Mutschlechner, Arttu Ylisirniö, Daniel Gunsch, Lukas Fischer, Alfons Jordan, Siegfried Schobesberger, Armin Hansel, and Gerhard Steiner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 5231–5246, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5231-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-5231-2019, 2019
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We introduce an alternative type of atmospheric pressure interface time-of-flight mass spectrometer (APi-TOF) with the main difference of using hexapole instead of quadrupole ion guides. The transfer of cluster ions through the hexapoles was characterised with focus on transmission efficiency, mass range and fragmentation of cluster ions. At the CERN CLOUD experiment we compared the performance of the ioniAPi-TOF with a standard quadrupole APi-TOF under controlled conditions.
Michal Lacko, Nijing Wang, Kristýna Sovová, Pavel Pásztor, and Patrik Španěl
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 4965–4982, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4965-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-4965-2019, 2019
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The soft chemical ionization analytical technique of selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry, SIFT-MS, was enhanced by a fast GC pre-separation unit to identify individual isomers. Experiments were carried out with two GC columns, MXT-1 and MXT-Volatiles, using two reagent ions, H3O+ and NO+, on monoterpene samples (an artificial mixture and coniferous needles). Analyses of product ion ratios allowed for quantification of multiple monoterpenes in partially separated chromatograms.
Benjamin L. Deming, Demetrios Pagonis, Xiaoxi Liu, Douglas A. Day, Ranajit Talukdar, Jordan E. Krechmer, Joost A. de Gouw, Jose L. Jimenez, and Paul J. Ziemann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 3453–3461, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-3453-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-3453-2019, 2019
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Losses or measurement delays of gas-phase compounds sampled through tubing are important to atmospheric science. Here we characterize 14 tubing materials by measuring the effects on step changes in organic compound concentration. We find that polymeric tubings exhibit absorptive partitioning behaviour while glass and metal tubings show adsorptive partitioning. Adsorptive materials impart complex humidity, concentration, and VOC–VOC interaction dependencies that absorptive tubings do not.
Xiaoxi Liu, Benjamin Deming, Demetrios Pagonis, Douglas A. Day, Brett B. Palm, Ranajit Talukdar, James M. Roberts, Patrick R. Veres, Jordan E. Krechmer, Joel A. Thornton, Joost A. de Gouw, Paul J. Ziemann, and Jose L. Jimenez
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 3137–3149, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-3137-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-3137-2019, 2019
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Delays or losses of gases in sampling tubing and instrumental surfaces due to surface interactions can lead to inaccurate quantification. By sampling with several chemical ionization mass spectrometers and six tubing materials, we quantify delays of semivolatile organic compounds and small polar gases. Delay times generally increase with decreasing volatility or increasing polarity and also depend on materials. The method and results will inform inlet material selection and instrumental design.
Emmanuel Arzoumanian, Felix R. Vogel, Ana Bastos, Bakhram Gaynullin, Olivier Laurent, Michel Ramonet, and Philippe Ciais
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 2665–2677, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2665-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2665-2019, 2019
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We tested commercial lower-cost CO2 sensors in laboratory and field studies to see if they can measure atmospheric CO2 mole fractions with less than 1 ppm bias (with monthly calibration), to allow continuous urban CO2 monitoring.
We find that the sensors' CO2 readings are influenced by temperature, atmospheric pressure and water vapour content, but this can be corrected for by adding sensors (T, p, RH) and carefully calibrating each sensor against a high-precision instrument.
Matthieu Riva, Pekka Rantala, Jordan E. Krechmer, Otso Peräkylä, Yanjun Zhang, Liine Heikkinen, Olga Garmash, Chao Yan, Markku Kulmala, Douglas Worsnop, and Mikael Ehn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 2403–2421, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2403-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-2403-2019, 2019
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The impact of aerosol particles on climate and air quality remains poorly understood due to multiple factors. One of the current limitations is the incomplete understanding of the contribution of oxygenated species, formed from the oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to aerosol formation. Taking advantage of recent mass spectrometric developments, we have evaluated and compared the capability of multiple state-of-the-art mass spectrometers to detect a wide variety of oxygenated VOCs.
Yufeng Pan, Lei Dong, Hongpeng Wu, Weiguang Ma, Lei Zhang, Wangbao Yin, Liantuan Xiao, Suotang Jia, and Frank K. Tittel
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 12, 1905–1911, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-1905-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-1905-2019, 2019
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Photoacoustic spectroscopy has one important advantage: its sensitivity is proportional to the excitation light power and thus the performance of PAS-based sensors can benefit from a high excitation light power. We developed a cavity-enhanced photoacoustic sensor in which a photoacoustic cell was placed into a high-finesse optical cavity. A signal gain factor of 166 was observed. For C2H2 detection, a 1σ detection limit of 0.45 ppmV was obtained at atmospheric pressure with a 1 s averaging time.
Cited articles
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Bauska, T. K., Brook, E. J., Mix, A. C., and Ross, A.: High-precision dual-inlet IRMS measurements of the stable isotopes of CO2 and the N2O
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Craig, H., Horibe, Y., and Sowers, T.: Gravitational Separation Of Gases And
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Eggleston, S., Schmitt, J., Bereiter, B., Schneider, R., and Fischer, H.: Evolution of the stable carbon isotope composition of atmospheric CO2 over
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Fischer, H., Severinghaus, J., Brook, E., Wolff, E., Albert, M., Alemany, O., Arthern, R., Bentley, C., Blankenship, D., Chappellaz, J., Creyts, T., Dahl-Jensen, D., Dinn, M., Frezzotti, M., Fujita, S., Gallee, H., Hindmarsh, R., Hudspeth, D., Jugie, G., Kawamura, K., Lipenkov, V., Miller, H., Mulvaney, R., Parrenin, F., Pattyn, F., Ritz, C., Schwander, J., Steinhage, D., van Ommen, T., and Wilhelms, F.: Where to find 1.5 million yr old ice for the IPICS “Oldest-Ice” ice core, Clim. Past, 9, 2489–2505, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-2489-2013, 2013. a, b
Fischer, H., Schmitt, J., Bock, M., Seth, B., Joos, F., Spahni, R., Lienert, S., Battaglia, G., Stocker, B. D., Schilt, A., and Brook, E. J.: N2O changes from the Last Glacial Maximum to the preindustrial – Part 1: Quantitative reconstruction of terrestrial and marine emissions using N2O stable isotopes in ice cores, Biogeosciences, 16, 3997–4021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-3997-2019, 2019. a
Fourteau, K., Faïn, X., Martinerie, P., Landais, A., Ekaykin, A. A., Lipenkov, V. Ya., and Chappellaz, J.: Analytical constraints on layered gas trapping and smoothing of atmospheric variability in ice under low-accumulation conditions, Clim. Past, 13, 1815–1830, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-13-1815-2017, 2017. a
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Köhler, P., Nehrbass-Ahles, C., Schmitt, J., Stocker, T. F., and Fischer, H.: A 156 kyr smoothed history of the atmospheric greenhouse gases CO2, CH4, and N2O and their radiative forcing, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 363–387, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-363-2017, 2017. a
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800 000 years, Nature, 453, 383–386, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06950, 2008. a
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Marcott, S. A., Bauska, T. K., Buizert, C., Steig, E. J., Rosen, J. L., Cuffey, K. M., Fudge, T. J., Severinghaus, J. P., Ahn, J., Kalk, M. L., McConnell, J. R., Sowers, T., Taylor, K. C., White, J. W. C., and Brook, E. J.: Centennial-scale changes in the global carbon cycle during the last
deglaciation, Nature, 514, 616–619, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13799, 2014. a, b
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Mühl, M., Schmitt, J., Seth, B., Lee, J. E., Edwards, J. S., Brook, E. J., Blunier, T., and Fischer, H.: Excess methane, ethane and propane production in Greenland ice core samples and a first isotopic characterization of excess methane, EGUsphere [preprint], https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-1133, 2022. a
Neff, P. D.: A review of the brittle ice zone in polar ice cores, Ann.
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under glacial and early interglacial climate conditions, Science, 369,
1000–1005, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aay8178, 2020. a, b, c, d, e
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Oyabu, I., Kawamura, K., Uchida, T., Fujita, S., Kitamura, K., Hirabayashi, M., Aoki, S., Morimoto, S., Nakazawa, T., Severinghaus, J. P., and Morgan, J. D.: Fractionation of O2
Raynaud, D. and Whillans, I. M.: Air content of the Byrd core and past
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Rhodes, R. H., Brook, E. J., Chiang, J. C. H., Blunier, T., Maselli, O. J.,
McConnell, J. R., Romanini, D., and Severinghaus, J. P.: Enhanced tropical
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Short summary
We present a new method to extract the gases from ice cores and measure their greenhouse gas composition. The ice is sublimated continuously with a near-infrared laser, releasing the gases, which are then analyzed on a laser absorption spectrometer. The main advantage over previous efforts is a low effective resolution of 1–2 cm. This capability is crucial for the analysis of highly thinned ice, as expected from ongoing drilling efforts to extend ice core history further back in time.
We present a new method to extract the gases from ice cores and measure their greenhouse gas...
