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Atmospheric Chemistry @ UEA

PROJECTS

NEEM

A Century-long Record of Trace Gases in the Northern Hemisphere from the NEEM (North Greenland Eemian) Ice Core Drilling Project in Greenland.

An international effort is underway to drill a new ice core in Greenland. This opens up the possibility to comprehensively study the rise of gaseous pollutants (carbon monoxide (CO) and its isotopic composition, hydrocarbons, halocarbons, organic nitrates etc.) over the last century or more. We will be analysing firn air and ice core samples, to derive time trends of the atmospheric concentrations and isotope ratios of various trace gases and to evaluate the implications for their atmospheric budget and chemistry over the last century.

NEEM International website (http://neem.ku.dk/about_neem/)

SHIVA

Stratospheric ozone: Halogen Impacts in a Varying Atmosphere.

SHIVA aims to study stratospheric halogen loading and ozone depletion resulting from climate feedbacks between emissions and transport of ozone depleting substances (ODS). Of particular relevance will be studies of short and “very short-lived substances” (VSLS) with climate-sensitive natural emissions. We will perform field studies of VSLS production, emission and transport in understudied, but critical, regions of the tropics using ship, aircraft and ground-based instrumentation. We will study their chemical transformation from the surface to the tropical tropopause layer (TTL), and on in to the stratosphere.

ARABADOPSIS

Regulation of methyl halide production in Arabidopsis and Brassica.

Methyl chloride and methyl bromide are the primary carriers of natural chlorine and bromine to the stratosphere where they catalyse the destruction of ozone. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana produces and emits methyl halides and the enzyme is encoded by the HARMLESS TO OZONE LAYER (HOL) gene. This project will use newly developed genetic tools and GC-MS technology to elucidate the function of methyl halide production in plants, assess the scale to which this occurs in Brassica crop plants and if HOL orthologues are responsible for Brassica emissions. The experimental will also address related questions on a bigger scale related to biodiversity and estimation of global emission rates both from wild and cultivated areas.

EUROHYDROS

A European Network for Atmospheric Hydrogen observations and studies.

While hydrogen does not influence the radiation budget of the atmosphere directly, it affects its oxidation capacity, through reaction with the OH radical. This in turn leads to an increased lifetime of many atmospheric constituents, making H₂ an indirect greenhouse gas. An increase of molecular hydrogen in the atmosphere also leads to increasing H₂O in the stratosphere. The emphasis of the project will be on the collection of high quality atmospheric data from a range of stations (Weybourne in the case of UEA) as well as on the understanding of the atmospheric budget of H₂.

EUROHYDROS website (http://www.meteor.uni-frankfurt.de/eurohydros/)

SCOUT-O3

Stratospheric-Climate Links with Emphasis on the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere.

SCOUT-O3 is a European Commission Integrated Project with over 100 scientists involved from 19 countries. The five year project aims to provide predictions about the evolution of the coupled chemistry/climate system, with emphasis on ozone change in the lower stratosphere and the associated UV and climate impact, to provide vital information for society and policy use. The UEA component involves measurements of ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) in stratospheric air samples collected from high altitude balloon flights, and from the Geophysica aircraft, during flights from Brazil, West Africa, and Northern Australia.

SCOUT-O3 website (http://www.ozone-sec.ch.cam.ac.uk/scout_o3/)

CLEARFOGG

Checking Layers of the Earth’s Atmosphere For Halogenated Ozone-Depleting and Greenhouse Gases.

Only a limited number of known halocarbons are continuously monitored worldwide and at times new ones are identified. There are strong indications for other fluorinated, chlorinated and brominated substances to be present in the troposphere and stratosphere. The aim of the project is to perform a systematic screening of the Earth’s atmosphere for unknown halocarbons. After establishing a capable analytical system, the search for substances will start with samples from ground-based stations around the globe, then proceeding with aircraft observations in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere and finally with balloon samples from the stratosphere. For the detected novel substances the radiative forcing and atmospheric lifetimes will be estimated in order to calculate their global warming potentials. Also the influence of the new halocarbons on stratospheric ozone depletion will be determined.