Airborne measurements of organic bromine compounds in the Pacific tropical tropopause layer
Very short-lived brominated substances (VSLBr) are an important source of stratospheric bromine, an effective ozone destruction catalyst. However, the accurate estimation of the organic and inorganic partitioning of bromine and the input to the stratosphere remains uncertain. Here, we report near-tropopause measurements of organic brominated substances found over the tropical Pacific during the NASA Airborne Tropical Tropopause Experiment campaigns. We combine aircraft observations and a chemistry-climate model to quantify the total bromine loading injected to the stratosphere. Surprisingly, despite differences in vertical transport between the Eastern and Western Pacific, VSLBr (organic + inorganic) contribute approximately similar amounts of bromine [∼6 (4-9) parts per thousand] to the stratospheric input at the tropical tropopause. These levels of bromine cause substantial ozone depletion in the lower stratosphere, and any increases in future abundances (e.g., as a result of aquaculture) will lead to larger depletions.
document
http://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d7tq630b
eng
geoscientificInformation
Text
publication
2016-01-01T00:00:00Z
publication
2015-11-10T00:00:00Z
Copyright 2015 Author(s). Published under license by the National Academy of Sciences.
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