Articles | Volume 18, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2289-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2289-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
08 Apr 2021
Research article |
| 08 Apr 2021
| 08 Apr 2021
Lignin oxidation products in soil, dripwater and speleothems from four different sites in New Zealand
Inken Heidke
Institute of Inorganic Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Duesbergweg 10–14, 55128 Mainz, Germany
Adam Hartland
Environmental Research Institute, School of Science, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Denis Scholz
Institute of Geosciences, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz,
J.-J.-Becher-Weg 21, 55128 Mainz, Germany
Andrew Pearson
Environmental Research Institute, School of Science, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
John Hellstrom
School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne, 253-283 Elgin St, Carlton, VIC 3053, Australia
Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach
Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST, United Kingdom
Thorsten Hoffmann
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute of Inorganic Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Duesbergweg 10–14, 55128 Mainz, Germany
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Maja Rüth, Nicole Bobrowski, Ellen Bräutigam, Alexander Nies, Jonas Kuhn, Thorsten Hoffmann, Niklas Karbach, Bastien Geil, Ralph Kleinschek, Stefan Schmitt, and Ulrich Platt
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3976, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3976, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Measurement Techniques (AMT).
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UV absorption and electrochemical O3 sensor measurement techniques suffer from interferences, especially from SO2, which is a main constituent of volcanic plumes. Only chemiluminescence (CL) O3 monitors have no known interference with SO2. However, modern CL O3 monitors are impractical because they are heavy and bulky. We developed and applied a lightweight version of a CL O3 instrument (l.5 kg, shoebox size) and present the result of those drone based CL O3 measurements.
Timothy J. Pollard, Jon D. Woodhead, Russell N. Drysdale, R. Lawrence Edwards, Xianglei Li, Ashlea N. Wainwright, Mathieu Pythoud, Hai Cheng, John C. Hellstrom, Ilaria Isola, Eleonora Regattieri, Giovanni Zanchetta, and Dylan S. Parmenter
Geochronology, 7, 335–355, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-7-335-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-7-335-2025, 2025
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The uranium–thorium (U–Th) and uranium–lead (U–Pb) radiometric dating methods are both suitable for dating carbonate samples ranging in age from about 400 000 to 650 000 years. Here we test agreement between the two methods by dating speleothems (i.e. secondary cave mineral deposits) that are well-suited to both methods. We demonstrate excellent agreement between them and discuss their relative strengths and weaknesses.
Anna Breuninger, Philipp Joppe, Jonas Wilsch, Cornelis Schwenk, Heiko Bozem, Nicolas Emig, Laurin Merkel, Rainer Rossberg, Timo Keber, Arthur Kutschka, Philipp Waleska, Stefan Hofmann, Sarah Richter, Florian Ungeheuer, Konstantin Dörholt, Thorsten Hoffmann, Annette Miltenberger, Johannes Schneider, Peter Hoor, and Alexander L. Vogel
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3129, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3129, 2025
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This study investigates molecular organic aerosol composition in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere from an airborne campaign over Central Europe in summer 2024. Via ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography and high-resolution mass spectrometry of tropospheric and stratospheric filter samples, we identified various organic compounds. Our findings underscore the significant cross-tropopause transport of biogenic secondary organic aerosol and anthropogenic pollutants.
Lutz Schirrmeister, Margret C. Fuchs, Thomas Opel, Andrei Andreev, Frank Kienast, Andrea Schneider, Larisa Nazarova, Larisa Frolova, Svetlana Kuzmina, Tatiana Kuznetsova, Vladimir Tumskoy, Heidrun Matthes, Gerrit Lohmann, Guido Grosse, Viktor Kunitsky, Hanno Meyer, Heike H. Zimmermann, Ulrike Herzschuh, Thomas Böhmer, Stuart Umbo, Sevi Modestou, Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach, Anfisa Pismeniuk, Georg Schwamborn, Stephanie Kusch, and Sebastian Wetterich
Clim. Past, 21, 1143–1184, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1143-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-1143-2025, 2025
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Geochronological, cryolithological, paleoecological, and modeling data reconstruct the Last Interglacial (LIG) climate around the New Siberian Islands and reveal significantly warmer conditions compared to today. The critical challenges in predicting future ecosystem responses lie in the fact that the land–ocean distribution during the LIG was markedly different from today, affecting the degree of continentality, which played a major role in modulating climate and ecosystem dynamics.
Maddalena Passelergue, Isabelle Couchoud, Russell N. Drysdale, John Hellstrom, Dirk L. Hoffmann, and Alan Greig
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2945, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2945, 2025
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The Holocene is marked at 8.2 ka by a North Atlantic freshening event. We investigate its climatic impact in SW France using high-resolution speleothem multiproxy analysis. While the event is seen in some European records, no clear signal appears in ours. This may reflect either limited regional impact, and/or low speleothem sensitivity to the Atlantic event, possibly masked by Mediterranean influence.
Calla N. Gould-Whaley, Russell N. Drysdale, Pauline C. Treble, Jan-Hendrik May, Stacey C. Priestley, John C. Hellstrom, Christopher R. Vardanega, and Clare C. Buswell
Clim. Past, 21, 857–876, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-857-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-857-2025, 2025
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Climate change is causing enhanced aridity across many regions of the globe, leading to increased reliance on groundwater resources. We need to understand how groundwater recharge behaves in arid regions over long timescales; unfortunately, arid landscapes tend to preserve very little evidence of their climatic past. We present evidence to suggest that carbonate formations that grow in groundwater can be used as archives of past groundwater recharge in Australia's arid zone.
Jackson Seymore, Miklós Szakáll, Alexander Theis, Subir K. Mitra, Christine Borchers, and Thorsten Hoffmann
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1425, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1425, 2025
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Laboratory studies examined carbonyl deposition into ice crystals using a flowtube setup. Ice crystals were grown under conditions that mimic cirrus clouds in the presence of carbonyl vapors. Ice and gas samples were collected and analyzed to calculate partitioning coefficients for 14 carbonyls at different temperatures. This revealed an inverse relationship between partitioning and temperature. Vapor pressure and molar mass were found to be the most significant factors in uptake.
Jade Margerum, Julia Homann, Stuart Umbo, Gernot Nehrke, Thorsten Hoffmann, Anton Vaks, Aleksandr Kononov, Alexander Osintsev, Alena Giesche, Andrew Mason, Franziska A. Lechleitner, Gideon M. Henderson, Ola Kwiecien, and Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach
Clim. Past, 21, 661–677, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-661-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-661-2025, 2025
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We analyse a southern Siberian stalagmite to reconstruct soil respiration, wildfire, and vegetation trends during the Last Interglacial (LIG) (124.1–118.8 ka) and the Holocene (10–0 ka). Wildfires were more prevalent during the LIG than the Holocene and were supported by fire-prone species, low soil respiration, and a greater difference between summer and winter temperature. We show that vegetation type and summer/winter temperature contrast are strong drivers of Siberian wildfires.
Pieter Vermeesch, Noah McLean, Anton Vaks, Tzahi Golan, Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach, and Randall Parris
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-432, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-432, 2025
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U-Pb dating of cave sediments has provided important new time constraints on the evolution of cave-dwelling organisms (including early humans), and of Earth's climate during the past 5 million years. This paper shows that the most common type of U-Pb dating, which uses 238U and 206Pb, can be inaccurate beyond 2 million years ago. It proposes an alternative type of U-Pb dating, using 235U and 207Pb, as a more accurate alternative.
Denis Leppla, Stefanie Hildmann, Nora Zannoni, Leslie Kremper, Bruna Hollanda, Jonathan Williams, Christopher Pöhlker, Stefan Wolff, Marta Sà, Maria Cristina Solci, Ulrich Pöschl, and Thorsten Hoffmann
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-141, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-141, 2025
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The chemical composition of organic particles in the Amazon rainforest was investigated to understand how biogenic and human emissions influence the atmosphere in this unique ecosystem. Seasonal patterns were found where wet seasons were dominated by biogenic compounds from natural sources while dry seasons showed increased fire-related pollutants. These findings reveal how emissions, fires and long-range transport affect atmospheric chemistry, with implications for climate models.
Sina Panitz, Michael Rogerson, Jack Longman, Nick Scroxton, Tim J. Lawson, Tim C. Atkinson, Vasile Ersek, James Baldini, Lisa Baldini, Stuart Umbo, Mahjoor A. Lone, Gideon M. Henderson, and Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach
Clim. Past, 21, 261–278, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-261-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-261-2025, 2025
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Reconstructions of past glaciations tell us about how ice sheets grow and retreat. In this study, we use speleothems (cave deposits, e.g. stalagmites) in the British Isles to help constrain the extent of past glaciations in both time and space. Speleothems require liquid water to grow, and therefore their presence indicates the absence of ice above the cave. By dating these speleothems, we can improve existing reconstructions of past ice sheets.
Johanna Schäfer, Anja Beschnitt, François Burgay, Thomas Singer, Margit Schwikowski, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 421–430, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-421-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-421-2025, 2025
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Glaciers preserve organic compounds from atmospheric aerosols, which can serve as markers for emission sources. Most studies overlook the enantiomers of chiral compounds. We developed a two-dimensional liquid chromatography method to determine the chiral ratios of the monoterpene oxidation products cis-pinic acid and cis-pinonic acid in ice-core samples. Applied to samples from the Belukha Glacier (1870–1970 CE), the method revealed fluctuating chiral ratios for the analytes.
Christine Borchers, Lasse Moormann, Bastien Geil, Niklas Karbach, and Thorsten Hoffmann
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-4015, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-4015, 2025
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A three-dimensionally printed filter holder is connected to a lightweight, high-performance pump. This sampling system allows for easy and cost-effective measurements of organic aerosols at different heights and locations. By elucidating the chemical composition of organic aerosol, sources and processing of the compounds can be identified. Measurements at different altitudes and times of the day provide insight into the chemical aging and daytime trends of the aerosol particles.
Jackson Seymore, Martanda Gautam, Miklós Szakáll, Alexander Theis, Thorsten Hoffmann, Jialiang Ma, Lingli Zhou, and Alexander Vogel
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3940, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3940, 2024
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We investigated the chemical retention of water-soluble organic compounds in Beijing aerosols using an acoustic levitator and drop freezing experiments. Samples from PM2.5 filter extracts were frozen at -15 °C without artificial nucleators and analyzed using ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry. Our findings reveal a nonnormal distribution of retention coefficients that differs from current literature on cloud droplets.
Hubert B. Vonhof, Sophie Verheyden, Dominique Bonjean, Stéphane Pirson, Michael Weber, Denis Scholz, John Hellstrom, Hai Cheng, Xue Jia, Kévin Di Modica, Gregory Abrams, Marjan A. P. van Nunen, Joost Ruiter, Michèlle van der Does, Daniel Böhl, and Jeroen H. J. L. van der Lubbe
Clim. Past, 20, 2741–2758, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-2741-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-2741-2024, 2024
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The sedimentary sequence in Scladina Cave (Belgium) is well-known for its rich archeological assemblages and its numerous faunal remains. Of particular interest is the presence of a nearly complete jaw bone of a Neanderthal child. In this study, we present new uranium series ages of stalagmites from the archeological sequence that allow more precise dating of the archeological finds. One key result is that the Neanderthal child may be slightly older than previously thought.
Christine Borchers, Jackson Seymore, Martanda Gautam, Konstantin Dörholt, Yannik Müller, Andreas Arndt, Laura Gömmer, Florian Ungeheuer, Miklós Szakáll, Stephan Borrmann, Alexander Theis, Alexander L. Vogel, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13961–13974, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13961-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13961-2024, 2024
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Riming, a crucial process in cloud dynamics, influences the vertical distribution of compounds in the atmosphere. Experiments in Mainz's wind tunnel investigated retention coefficients of organic compounds under varying conditions. Findings suggest a correlation between the Henry's law constant and retention, applicable even to complex organic molecules.
Niklas Karbach, Lisa Höhler, Peter Hoor, Heiko Bozem, Nicole Bobrowski, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 4081–4086, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-4081-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-4081-2024, 2024
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The system presented here can accurately generate and reproduce a stable flow of gas mixtures of known concentrations over several days using ambient air as a dilution medium. In combination with the small size and low weight of the system, this enables the calibration of hydrogen sensors in the field, reducing the influence of matrix effects on the accuracy of the sensor. The system is inexpensive to assemble and easy to maintain, which is the key to reliable measurement results.
Stuart Umbo, Franziska Lechleitner, Thomas Opel, Sevasti Modestou, Tobias Braun, Anton Vaks, Gideon Henderson, Pete Scott, Alexander Osintzev, Alexandr Kononov, Irina Adrian, Yuri Dublyansky, Alena Giesche, and Sebastian Breitenbach
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1691, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1691, 2024
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We use cave rocks to reconstruct northern Siberian climate 8.68 ± 0.09 million years ago. We show that when global average temperature was about 4.5 °C warmer than today (similar to what’s expected in the coming decades should carbon emissions continue unabated), Arctic temperature increased by more than 18 °C. Similar levels of Arctic warming in the future would see huge areas of permafrost (permanently frozen ground) thaw and release greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
Miguel Bartolomé, Ana Moreno, Carlos Sancho, Isabel Cacho, Heather Stoll, Negar Haghipour, Ánchel Belmonte, Christoph Spötl, John Hellstrom, R. Lawrence Edwards, and Hai Cheng
Clim. Past, 20, 467–494, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-467-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-467-2024, 2024
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Reconstructing past temperatures at regional scales during the Common Era is necessary to place the current warming in the context of natural climate variability. We present a climate reconstruction based on eight stalagmites from four caves in the Pyrenees, NE Spain. These stalagmites were dated precisely and analysed for their oxygen isotopes, which appear dominated by temperature changes. Solar variability and major volcanic eruptions are the two main drivers of observed climate variability.
Heather M. Stoll, Chris Day, Franziska Lechleitner, Oliver Kost, Laura Endres, Jakub Sliwinski, Carlos Pérez-Mejías, Hai Cheng, and Denis Scholz
Clim. Past, 19, 2423–2444, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2423-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2423-2023, 2023
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Stalagmites formed in caves provide valuable information about past changes in climate and vegetation conditions. In this contribution, we present a new method to better estimate past changes in soil and vegetation productivity using carbon isotopes and trace elements measured in stalagmites. Applying this method to other stalagmites should provide a better indication of past vegetation feedbacks to climate change.
Julia Homann, Niklas Karbach, Stacy A. Carolin, Daniel H. James, David Hodell, Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach, Ola Kwiecien, Mark Brenner, Carlos Peraza Lope, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Biogeosciences, 20, 3249–3260, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3249-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3249-2023, 2023
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Cave stalagmites contain substances that can be used to reconstruct past changes in local and regional environmental conditions. We used two classes of biomarkers (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and monosaccharide anhydrides) to detect the presence of fire and to also explore changes in fire regime (e.g. fire frequency, intensity, and fuel source). We tested our new method on a stalagmite from Mayapan, a large Maya city on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Timothy Pollard, Jon Woodhead, John Hellstrom, John Engel, Roger Powell, and Russell Drysdale
Geochronology, 5, 181–196, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-5-181-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-5-181-2023, 2023
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When using the uranium–lead (U–Pb) radiometric dating method on very young materials (e.g. Quaternary age zircon and carbonate minerals), it is important to accurately account for the production and decay of intermediate
daughterisotopes in the uranium-series decay chain. DQPB is open-source software that allows users to easily perform such calculations for a variety of sample types and produce publication-ready graphical outputs of the resulting age information.
Denis Leppla, Nora Zannoni, Leslie Kremper, Jonathan Williams, Christopher Pöhlker, Marta Sá, Maria Christina Solci, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 809–820, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-809-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-809-2023, 2023
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Chiral chemodiversity plays a critical role in biochemical processes such as insect and plant communication. Here we report on the measurement of chiral-specified secondary organic aerosol in the Amazon rainforest. The results show that the chiral ratio is mainly determined by large-scale emission processes. Characteristic emissions of chiral aerosol precursors from different forest ecosystems can thus provide large-scale information on different biogenic sources via chiral particle analysis.
Yunfan Liu, Hang Su, Siwen Wang, Chao Wei, Wei Tao, Mira L. Pöhlker, Christopher Pöhlker, Bruna A. Holanda, Ovid O. Krüger, Thorsten Hoffmann, Manfred Wendisch, Paulo Artaxo, Ulrich Pöschl, Meinrat O. Andreae, and Yafang Cheng
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 251–272, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-251-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-251-2023, 2023
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The origins of the abundant cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) in the upper troposphere (UT) of the Amazon remain unclear. With model developments of new secondary organic aerosol schemes and constrained by observation, we show that strong aerosol nucleation and condensation in the UT is triggered by biogenic organics, and organic condensation is key for UT CCN production. This UT CCN-producing mechanism may prevail over broader vegetation canopies and deserves emphasis in aerosol–climate feedback.
Hege Kilhavn, Isabelle Couchoud, Russell N. Drysdale, Carlos Rossi, John Hellstrom, Fabien Arnaud, and Henri Wong
Clim. Past, 18, 2321–2344, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2321-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2321-2022, 2022
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The analysis of stable carbon and oxygen isotopic ratios, trace element ratios, and growth rate from a Spanish speleothem provides quantitative information on past hydrological conditions during the early Holocene in south-western Europe. Our data show that the cave site experienced increased effective recharge during the 8.2 ka event. Additionally, the oxygen isotopes indicate a change in the isotopic composition of the moisture source, associated with the meltwater flux to the North Atlantic.
Jing Duan, Ru-Jin Huang, Yifang Gu, Chunshui Lin, Haobin Zhong, Wei Xu, Quan Liu, Yan You, Jurgita Ovadnevaite, Darius Ceburnis, Thorsten Hoffmann, and Colin O'Dowd
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10139–10153, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10139-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10139-2022, 2022
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Biomass-burning-influenced oxygenated organic aerosol (OOA-BB), formed from the photochemical oxidation and aging of biomass burning OA (BBOA), was resolved in urban Xi’an. The aqueous-phase processed oxygenated OA (aq-OOA) concentration was more dependent on secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA) content and aerosol liquid water content (ALWC). The increased aq-OOA contribution during SIA-enhanced periods likely reflects OA evolution due to the addition of alcohol or peroxide groups
Sophie F. Warken, Therese Weißbach, Tobias Kluge, Hubert Vonhof, Denis Scholz, Rolf Vieten, Martina Schmidt, Amos Winter, and Norbert Frank
Clim. Past, 18, 167–181, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-167-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-167-2022, 2022
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The analysis of fluid inclusions from a Puerto Rican speleothem provides quantitative information about past rainfall conditions and temperatures during the Last Glacial Period, when the climate was extremely variable. Our data show that the region experienced a climate that was generally colder and drier. However, we also reconstruct intervals when temperatures reached nearly modern values, and convective activity was comparable to or only slightly weaker than the present day.
Cinthya Esther Nava Fernandez, Tobias Braun, Bethany Fox, Adam Hartland, Ola Kwiecien, Chelsea Pederson, Sebastian Hoepker, Stefano Bernasconi, Madalina Jaggi, John Hellstrom, Fernando Gázquez, Amanda French, Norbert Marwan, Adrian Immenhauser, and Sebastian Franz Martin Breitenbach
Clim. Past Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-172, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-2021-172, 2022
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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We provide a ca. 1000 year long (6.4–5.4 ka BP) stalagmite-based reconstruction of mid-Holocene rainfall variability in the tropical western Pacific. The annually laminated multi-proxy (δ13C, δ18O, X/Ca, gray values) record comes from Niue island and informs on El Nino-Southern Oscillation and South Pacific Convergence Zone dynamics. Our data suggest that ENSO was active and influenced rainfall seasonality over the covered time interval. Rainfall seasonality was subdued during active ENSO phases
Andrew J. Mason, Anton Vaks, Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach, John N. Hooker, and Gideon M. Henderson
Geochronology, 4, 33–54, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-33-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-33-2022, 2022
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A novel technique for the uranium–lead dating of geologically young carbonates is described and tested. The technique expands our ability to date geological events such as fault movements and past climate records.
Alexandra Gutmann, Nicole Bobrowski, Marcello Liotta, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6395–6406, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6395-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6395-2021, 2021
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Motivated by a special interest in bromine chemistry in volcanic plumes, the study presented here describes a new method for the quantitative collection of gaseous hydrogen bromide in gas diffusion denuders. The hydrogen bromide reacted during sampling with appropriate epoxides applied to the denuder walls. The denuder sampling assembly was successfully deployed in the volcanic plume of Masaya volcano, Nicaragua.
Haijie Tong, Fobang Liu, Alexander Filippi, Jake Wilson, Andrea M. Arangio, Yun Zhang, Siyao Yue, Steven Lelieveld, Fangxia Shen, Helmi-Marja K. Keskinen, Jing Li, Haoxuan Chen, Ting Zhang, Thorsten Hoffmann, Pingqing Fu, William H. Brune, Tuukka Petäjä, Markku Kulmala, Maosheng Yao, Thomas Berkemeier, Manabu Shiraiwa, and Ulrich Pöschl
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10439–10455, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10439-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10439-2021, 2021
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We measured radical yields of aqueous PM2.5 extracts and found lower yields at higher concentrations of PM2.5. Abundances of water-soluble transition metals and aromatics in PM2.5 were positively correlated with the relative fraction of •OH but negatively correlated with the relative fraction of C-centered radicals among detected radicals. Composition-dependent reactive species yields may explain differences in the reactivity and health effects of PM2.5 in clean versus polluted air.
Kai Wang, Ru-Jin Huang, Martin Brüggemann, Yun Zhang, Lu Yang, Haiyan Ni, Jie Guo, Meng Wang, Jiajun Han, Merete Bilde, Marianne Glasius, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 9089–9104, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9089-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9089-2021, 2021
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Here we present the detailed molecular composition of the organic aerosol collected in three eastern Chinese cities from north to south, Changchun, Shanghai and Guangzhou, by applying LC–Orbitrap analysis. Accordingly, the aromaticity degree of chemical compounds decreases from north to south, while the oxidation degree increases from north to south, which can be explained by the different anthropogenic emissions and photochemical oxidation processes.
Bo Galle, Santiago Arellano, Nicole Bobrowski, Vladimir Conde, Tobias P. Fischer, Gustav Gerdes, Alexandra Gutmann, Thorsten Hoffmann, Ima Itikarai, Tomas Krejci, Emma J. Liu, Kila Mulina, Scott Nowicki, Tom Richardson, Julian Rüdiger, Kieran Wood, and Jiazhi Xu
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4255–4277, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4255-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4255-2021, 2021
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Measurements of volcanic gases are important for geophysical research, risk assessment and environmental impact studies. Some gases, like SO2 and BrO, may be studied from the ground at a safe distance using remote sensing techniques. Many other gases require in situ access to the gas plume. Here, a drone may be an attractive alternative. This paper describes a drone specially adapted for volcanic gas studies and demonstrates its use in a field campaign at Manam volcano in Papua New Guinea.
Wei Yuan, Ru-Jin Huang, Lu Yang, Ting Wang, Jing Duan, Jie Guo, Haiyan Ni, Yang Chen, Qi Chen, Yongjie Li, Ulrike Dusek, Colin O'Dowd, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 3685–3697, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3685-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3685-2021, 2021
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We characterized the seasonal variations in nitrated aromatic compounds (NACs) in composition, sources, and their light absorption contribution to brown carbon (BrC) aerosol in Xi'an, Northwest China. Our results show that secondary formation and vehicular emission were dominant sources in summer (~80 %), and biomass burning and coal combustion were major sources in winter (~75 %), and they indicate that the composition and sources of NACs have a profound impact on the light absorption of BrC
Julian Rüdiger, Alexandra Gutmann, Nicole Bobrowski, Marcello Liotta, J. Maarten de Moor, Rolf Sander, Florian Dinger, Jan-Lukas Tirpitz, Martha Ibarra, Armando Saballos, María Martínez, Elvis Mendoza, Arnoldo Ferrufino, John Stix, Juan Valdés, Jonathan M. Castro, and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 3371–3393, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3371-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-3371-2021, 2021
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We present an innovative approach to study halogen chemistry in the plume of Masaya volcano in Nicaragua. An unique data set was collected using multiple techniques, including drones. These data enabled us to determine the fraction of activation of the respective halogens at various plume ages, where in-mixing of ambient air causes chemical reactions. An atmospheric chemistry box model was employed to further examine the field results and help our understanding of volcanic plume chemistry.
Marcel Weloe and Thorsten Hoffmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5725–5738, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5725-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5725-2020, 2020
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Aerosol mass spectrometers (AMSs) are frequently applied in atmospheric aerosol research in connection with climate, environmental or health-related projects. The paper describes a new real-time technique for the measurement of organic peroxides, which play an important role in new particle formation and as
reactive oxygen speciesin aerosol–health-related aspects of atmospheric aerosols.
Laia Comas-Bru, Kira Rehfeld, Carla Roesch, Sahar Amirnezhad-Mozhdehi, Sandy P. Harrison, Kamolphat Atsawawaranunt, Syed Masood Ahmad, Yassine Ait Brahim, Andy Baker, Matthew Bosomworth, Sebastian F. M. Breitenbach, Yuval Burstyn, Andrea Columbu, Michael Deininger, Attila Demény, Bronwyn Dixon, Jens Fohlmeister, István Gábor Hatvani, Jun Hu, Nikita Kaushal, Zoltán Kern, Inga Labuhn, Franziska A. Lechleitner, Andrew Lorrey, Belen Martrat, Valdir Felipe Novello, Jessica Oster, Carlos Pérez-Mejías, Denis Scholz, Nick Scroxton, Nitesh Sinha, Brittany Marie Ward, Sophie Warken, Haiwei Zhang, and SISAL Working Group members
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 2579–2606, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2579-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2579-2020, 2020
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This paper presents an updated version of the SISAL (Speleothem Isotope Synthesis and Analysis) database. This new version contains isotopic data from 691 speleothem records from 294 cave sites and new age–depth models, including their uncertainties, for 512 speleothems.
Ting Lei, Nan Ma, Juan Hong, Thomas Tuch, Xin Wang, Zhibin Wang, Mira Pöhlker, Maofa Ge, Weigang Wang, Eugene Mikhailov, Thorsten Hoffmann, Ulrich Pöschl, Hang Su, Alfred Wiedensohler, and Yafang Cheng
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5551–5567, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5551-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5551-2020, 2020
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We present the design of a nano-hygroscopicity tandem differential mobility analyzer (nano-HTDMA) apparatus that enables high accuracy and precision in hygroscopic growth measurements of aerosol nanoparticles with diameters less than 10 nm. We further introduce comprehensive methods for system calibration and validation of the performance of the system. We then study the size dependence of the deliquescence and the efflorescence of aerosol nanoparticles for sizes down to 6 nm.
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Short summary
We analyzed lignin oxidation products (LOPs) in leaf litter and different soil horizons as well as dripwater and flowstone samples from four different cave sites from different vegetation zones in New Zealand using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. We test whether the original source-dependent LOP signal of the overlying vegetation is preserved and can be recovered from flowstone samples and investigate how the signal is altered by the transport from the soil to the cave.
We analyzed lignin oxidation products (LOPs) in leaf litter and different soil horizons as well...
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