Articles | Volume 23, issue 11
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-3939-2026
© Author(s) 2026. 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-23-3939-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
15 Jun 2026
Research article |
| 15 Jun 2026
| 15 Jun 2026
In situ production of hybrid N2O in dust-rich Antarctic ice
Lison Soussaintjean
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Climate and Environmental Physics, Physics Institute and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland
Jochen Schmitt
Climate and Environmental Physics, Physics Institute and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland
Joël Savarino
University Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IRD, Grenoble INP, INRAE, IGE, Grenoble, 38000, France
J. Andy Menking
Australian Antarctic Program Partnership, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia
Environmental Research Unit Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation Aspendale, Victoria, Australia
Edward J. Brook
College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
Barbara Seth
Climate and Environmental Physics, Physics Institute and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland
Vladimir Lipenkov
Climate and Environmental Research Laboratory, Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, Saint Petersburg, 199397, Russia
Thomas Röckmann
Institute for Marine and Atmospheric research Utrecht (IMAU), Utrecht University, 3584CC Utrecht, the Netherlands
Hubertus Fischer
Climate and Environmental Physics, Physics Institute and Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland
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Gerrit Kuhlmann, Foteini Stavropoulou, Stefan Schwietzke, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, Andrew Thorpe, Andreas Hueni, Lukas Emmenegger, Andreea Calcan, Thomas Röckmann, and Dominik Brunner
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Brice Barret, Patrice Medina, Natalie Brett, Roman Pohorsky, Kathy S. Law, Slimane Bekki, Gilberto J. Fochesatto, Julia Schmale, Steve R. Arnold, Andrea Baccarini, Maurizio Busetto, Meeta Cesler-Maloney, Barbara D'Anna, Stefano Decesari, Jingqiu Mao, Gianluca Pappaccogli, Joel Savarino, Federico Scoto, and William R. Simpson
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 1163–1184, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-1163-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-1163-2025, 2025
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The Fairbanks area experiences severe pollution episodes in winter because of enhanced emissions of pollutants trapped near the surface by strong temperature inversions. Low-cost sensors were deployed on board a car and a tethered balloon to measure the concentrations of gaseous pollutants (CO, O3, and NOx) in Fairbanks during winter 2022. Data calibration with reference measurements and machine learning methods enabled us to document pollution at the surface and power plant plumes aloft.
Hossein Maazallahi, Foteini Stavropoulou, Samuel Jonson Sutanto, Michael Steiner, Dominik Brunner, Mariano Mertens, Patrick Jöckel, Antoon Visschedijk, Hugo Denier van der Gon, Stijn Dellaert, Nataly Velandia Salinas, Stefan Schwietzke, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, Sorin Ghemulet, Alexandru Pana, Magdalena Ardelean, Marius Corbu, Andreea Calcan, Stephen A. Conley, Mackenzie L. Smith, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1497–1511, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1497-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1497-2025, 2025
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This article presents insights from airborne in situ measurements collected during the ROmanian Methane Emissions from Oil and gas (ROMEO) campaign supported by two models. Results reveal Romania's oil and gas methane emissions were significantly under-reported to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2019. A large underestimation was also found in the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) v7.0 for the study domain in the same year.
Natalie Brett, Kathy S. Law, Steve R. Arnold, Javier G. Fochesatto, Jean-Christophe Raut, Tatsuo Onishi, Robert Gilliam, Kathleen Fahey, Deanna Huff, George Pouliot, Brice Barret, Elsa Dieudonné, Roman Pohorsky, Julia Schmale, Andrea Baccarini, Slimane Bekki, Gianluca Pappaccogli, Federico Scoto, Stefano Decesari, Antonio Donateo, Meeta Cesler-Maloney, William Simpson, Patrice Medina, Barbara D'Anna, Brice Temime-Roussel, Joel Savarino, Sarah Albertin, Jingqiu Mao, Becky Alexander, Allison Moon, Peter F. DeCarlo, Vanessa Selimovic, Robert Yokelson, and Ellis S. Robinson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1063–1104, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1063-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1063-2025, 2025
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Processes influencing dispersion of local anthropogenic pollution in Arctic wintertime are investigated with Lagrangian dispersion modelling. Simulated power plant plume rise that considers temperature inversion layers improves results compared to observations (interior Alaska). Modelled surface concentrations are improved by representation of vertical mixing and emission estimates. Large increases in diesel vehicle emissions at temperatures reaching −35°C are required to reproduce observed NOx.
Hella van Asperen, Thorsten Warneke, Alessandro Carioca de Araújo, Bruce Forsberg, Sávio José Filgueiras Ferreira, Thomas Röckmann, Carina van der Veen, Sipko Bulthuis, Leonardo Ramos de Oliveira, Thiago de Lima Xavier, Jailson da Mata, Marta de Oliveira Sá, Paulo Ricardo Teixeira, Julie Andrews de França e Silva, Susan Trumbore, and Justus Notholt
Biogeosciences, 21, 3183–3199, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3183-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3183-2024, 2024
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Carbon monoxide (CO) is regarded as an important indirect greenhouse gas. Soils can emit and take up CO, but, until now, uncertainty remains as to which process dominates in tropical rainforests. We present the first soil CO flux measurements from a tropical rainforest. Based on our observations, we report that tropical rainforest soils are a net source of CO. In addition, we show that valley streams and inundated areas are likely additional hot spots of CO in the ecosystem.
Dominique Raynaud, Qiuzhen Yin, Emilie Capron, Zhipeng Wu, Frédéric Parrenin, André Berger, and Vladimir Lipenkov
Clim. Past, 20, 1269–1282, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1269-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1269-2024, 2024
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There is a lack of reconstructions from Antarctic ice cores of the temperature during the summer, a critical season in terms of solar energy received, preventing a good understanding of the link between Antarctic past climate and astronomically induced insolation changes. Here, the variations in total air content in an Antarctic ice core are found to be correlated to local summer temperatures simulated with a climate model. This tracer can be used to reconstruct past local summer temperatures.
V. Holly L. Winton, Robert Mulvaney, Joel Savarino, Kyle R. Clem, and Markus M. Frey
Clim. Past, 20, 1213–1232, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1213-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1213-2024, 2024
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In 2018, a new 120 m ice core was drilled in a region located under the Antarctic ozone hole. We present the first results including a 1300-year record of snow accumulation and aerosol chemistry. We investigate the aerosol and moisture source regions and atmospheric processes related to the ice core record and discuss what this means for developing a record of past ultraviolet radiation and ozone depletion using the stable isotopic composition of nitrate measured in the same ice core.
Jin Ma, Linda M. J. Kooijmans, Norbert Glatthor, Stephen A. Montzka, Marc von Hobe, Thomas Röckmann, and Maarten C. Krol
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 6047–6070, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-6047-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-6047-2024, 2024
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The global budget of atmospheric COS can be optimised by inverse modelling using TM5-4DVAR, with the co-constraints of NOAA surface observations and MIPAS satellite data. We found reduced COS biosphere uptake from inversions and improved land and ocean separation using MIPAS satellite data assimilation. Further improvements are expected from better quantification of COS ocean and biosphere fluxes.
Katrine A. Gorham, Sam Abernethy, Tyler R. Jones, Peter Hess, Natalie M. Mahowald, Daphne Meidan, Matthew S. Johnson, Maarten M. J. W. van Herpen, Yangyang Xu, Alfonso Saiz-Lopez, Thomas Röckmann, Chloe A. Brashear, Erika Reinhardt, and David Mann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 5659–5670, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5659-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5659-2024, 2024
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Rapid reduction in atmospheric methane is needed to slow the rate of global warming. Reducing anthropogenic methane emissions is a top priority. However, atmospheric methane is also impacted by rising natural emissions and changing sinks. Studies of possible atmospheric methane removal approaches, such as iron salt aerosols to increase the chlorine radical sink, benefit from a roadmapped approach to understand if there may be viable and socially acceptable ways to decrease future risk.
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.
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.
Zhuang Jiang, Becky Alexander, Joel Savarino, and Lei Geng
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 4895–4914, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4895-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4895-2024, 2024
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Ice-core nitrate could track the past atmospheric NOx and oxidant level, but its interpretation is hampered by the post-depositional processing. In this work, an inverse model was developed and tested against two polar sites and was shown to well reproduce the observed nitrate signals in snow and atmosphere, suggesting that the model can properly correct for the effect of post-depositional processing. This model offers a very useful tool for future studies on ice-core nitrate records.
Sarah Albertin, Joël Savarino, Slimane Bekki, Albane Barbero, Roberto Grilli, Quentin Fournier, Irène Ventrillard, Nicolas Caillon, and Kathy Law
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 1361–1388, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1361-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1361-2024, 2024
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This study reports the first simultaneous records of oxygen (Δ17O) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes in nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and nitrate (NO3−). These data are combined with atmospheric observations to explore sub-daily N reactive chemistry and quantify N fractionation effects in an Alpine winter city. The results highlight the necessity of using Δ17O and δ15N in both NO2 and NO3− to avoid biased estimations of NOx sources and fates from NO3− isotopic records in urban winter environments.
Vladimir Mikhalenko, Stanislav Kutuzov, Pavel Toropov, Michel Legrand, Sergey Sokratov, Gleb Chernyakov, Ivan Lavrentiev, Susanne Preunkert, Anna Kozachek, Mstislav Vorobiev, Aleksandra Khairedinova, and Vladimir Lipenkov
Clim. Past, 20, 237–255, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-237-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-237-2024, 2024
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In this paper, we present a reconstruction of snow accumulation for both summer and winter over the past 260 years using ice-core records obtained from Mt. Elbrus in the Caucasus region. The accumulation record represents the historical precipitation patterns in a vast region encompassing the northern Caucasus, Black Sea, and southeastern Europe. Our findings show that the North Atlantic plays a crucial role in determining precipitation levels in this region.
Alina Fiehn, Maximilian Eckl, Julian Kostinek, Michał Gałkowski, Christoph Gerbig, Michael Rothe, Thomas Röckmann, Malika Menoud, Hossein Maazallahi, Martina Schmidt, Piotr Korbeń, Jarosław Neçki, Mila Stanisavljević, Justyna Swolkień, Andreas Fix, and Anke Roiger
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 15749–15765, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15749-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15749-2023, 2023
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During the CoMet mission in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB) ground-based and airborne air samples were taken and analyzed for the isotopic composition of CH4 to derive the mean signature of the USCB and source signatures of individual coal mines. Using δ2H signatures, the biogenic emissions from the USCB account for 15 %–50 % of total emissions, which is underestimated in common emission inventories. This demonstrates the importance of δ2H-CH4 observations for methane source apportionment.
Robbert P. J. Moonen, Getachew A. Adnew, Oscar K. Hartogensis, Jordi Vilà-Guerau de Arellano, David J. Bonell Fontas, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5787–5810, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5787-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5787-2023, 2023
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Isotope fluxes allow for net ecosystem gas exchange fluxes to be partitioned into sub-components like plant assimilation, respiration and transpiration, which can help us better understand the environmental drivers of each partial flux. We share the results of a field campaign isotope fluxes were derived using a combination of laser spectroscopy and eddy covariance. We found lag times and high frequency signal loss in the isotope fluxes we derived and present methods to correct for both.
Leonard Kirago, Örjan Gustafsson, Samuel Mwaniki Gaita, Sophie L. Haslett, Michael J. Gatari, Maria Elena Popa, Thomas Röckmann, Christoph Zellweger, Martin Steinbacher, Jörg Klausen, Christian Félix, David Njiru, and August Andersson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 14349–14357, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-14349-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-14349-2023, 2023
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This study provides ground-observational evidence that supports earlier suggestions that savanna fires are the main emitters and modulators of carbon monoxide gas in Africa. Using isotope-based techniques, the study has shown that about two-thirds of this gas is emitted from savanna fires, while for urban areas, in this case Nairobi, primary sources approach 100 %. The latter has implications for air quality policy, suggesting primary emissions such as traffic should be targeted.
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.
Jenna A. Epifanio, Edward J. Brook, Christo Buizert, Erin C. Pettit, Jon S. Edwards, John M. Fegyveresi, Todd A. Sowers, Jeffrey P. Severinghaus, and Emma C. Kahle
The Cryosphere, 17, 4837–4851, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4837-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4837-2023, 2023
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The total air content (TAC) of polar ice cores has long been considered a potential proxy for past ice sheet elevation. This study presents a high-resolution record of TAC from the South Pole ice core. The record reveals orbital- and millennial-scale variability that cannot be explained by elevation changes. The orbital- and millennial-scale changes are likely a product of firn grain metamorphism near the surface of the ice sheet, due to summer insolation changes or local accumulation changes.
Xavier Faïn, David M. Etheridge, Kévin Fourteau, Patricia Martinerie, Cathy M. Trudinger, Rachael H. Rhodes, Nathan J. Chellman, Ray L. Langenfelds, Joseph R. McConnell, Mark A. J. Curran, Edward J. Brook, Thomas Blunier, Grégory Teste, Roberto Grilli, Anthony Lemoine, William T. Sturges, Boris Vannière, Johannes Freitag, and Jérôme Chappellaz
Clim. Past, 19, 2287–2311, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2287-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2287-2023, 2023
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We report on a 3000-year record of carbon monoxide (CO) levels in the Southern Hemisphere's high latitudes by combining ice core and firn air measurements with modern direct atmospheric samples. Antarctica [CO] remained stable (–835 to 1500 CE), decreased during the Little Ice Age, and peaked around 1985 CE. Such evolution reflects stable biomass burning CO emissions before industrialization, followed by growth from CO anthropogenic sources, which decline after 1985 due to improved combustion.
Marie Bouchet, Amaëlle Landais, Antoine Grisart, Frédéric Parrenin, Frédéric Prié, Roxanne Jacob, Elise Fourré, Emilie Capron, Dominique Raynaud, Vladimir Ya Lipenkov, Marie-France Loutre, Thomas Extier, Anders Svensson, Etienne Legrain, Patricia Martinerie, Markus Leuenberger, Wei Jiang, Florian Ritterbusch, Zheng-Tian Lu, and Guo-Min Yang
Clim. Past, 19, 2257–2286, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2257-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-2257-2023, 2023
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A new federative chronology for five deep polar ice cores retrieves 800 000 years of past climate variations with improved accuracy. Precise ice core timescales are key to studying the mechanisms linking changes in the Earth’s orbit to the diverse climatic responses (temperature and atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations). To construct the chronology, new measurements from the oldest continuous ice core as well as glaciological modeling estimates were combined in a statistical model.
Hossein Maazallahi, Antonio Delre, Charlotte Scheutz, Anders M. Fredenslund, Stefan Schwietzke, Hugo Denier van der Gon, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5051–5073, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5051-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5051-2023, 2023
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Measurement methods are increasingly deployed to verify reported methane emissions of gas leaks. This study describes unique advantages and limitations of three methods. Two methods are rapidly deployed, but uncertainties and biases exist for some leak locations. In contrast, the suction method could accurately determine leak rates in principle. However, this method, which provides data for the German emission inventory, creates an overall low bias in our study due to non-random site selection.
Tim René de Groot, Anne Margriet Mol, Katherine Mesdag, Pierre Ramond, Rachel Ndhlovu, Julia Catherine Engelmann, Thomas Röckmann, and Helge Niemann
Biogeosciences, 20, 3857–3872, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3857-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3857-2023, 2023
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This study investigates methane dynamics in the Wadden Sea. Our measurements revealed distinct variations triggered by seasonality and tidal forcing. The methane budget was higher in warmer seasons but surprisingly high in colder seasons. Methane dynamics were amplified during low tides, flushing the majority of methane into the North Sea or releasing it to the atmosphere. Methanotrophic activity was also elevated during low tide but mitigated only a small fraction of the methane efflux.
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.
Alexis Lamothe, Joel Savarino, Patrick Ginot, Lison Soussaintjean, Elsa Gautier, Pete D. Akers, Nicolas Caillon, and Joseph Erbland
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4015–4030, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4015-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4015-2023, 2023
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Ammonia is a reactive gas in our atmosphere that is key in air quality issues. Assessing its emissions and how it reacts is a hot topic that can be addressed from the past. Stable isotopes (the mass of the molecule) measured in ice cores (glacial archives) can teach us a lot. However, the concentrations in ice cores are very small. We propose a protocol to limit the contamination and apply it to one ice core drilled in Mont Blanc, describing the opportunities our method brings.
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.
Andreas Forstmaier, Jia Chen, Florian Dietrich, Juan Bettinelli, Hossein Maazallahi, Carsten Schneider, Dominik Winkler, Xinxu Zhao, Taylor Jones, Carina van der Veen, Norman Wildmann, Moritz Makowski, Aydin Uzun, Friedrich Klappenbach, Hugo Denier van der Gon, Stefan Schwietzke, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 6897–6922, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-6897-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-6897-2023, 2023
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Large cities emit greenhouse gases which contribute to global warming. In this study, we measured the release of one important green house gas, methane, in Hamburg. Multiple sources that contribute to methane emissions were located and quantified. Methane sources were found to be mainly caused by human activity (e.g., by release from oil and gas refineries). Moreover, potential natural sources have been located, such as the Elbe River and lakes.
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.
Truls Andersen, Zhao Zhao, Marcel de Vries, Jaroslaw Necki, Justyna Swolkien, Malika Menoud, Thomas Röckmann, Anke Roiger, Andreas Fix, Wouter Peters, and Huilin Chen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 5191–5216, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-5191-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-5191-2023, 2023
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The Upper Silesian Coal Basin, Poland, is one of the hot spots of methane emissions in Europe. Using an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), we performed atmospheric measurements of methane concentrations downwind of five ventilation shafts in this region and determined the emission rates from the individual shafts. We found a strong correlation between quantified shaft-averaged emission rates and hourly inventory data, which also allows us to estimate the methane emissions from the entire region.
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.
Simone Ventisette, Samuele Baldini, Claudio Artoni, Silvia Becagli, Laura Caiazzo, Barbara Delmonte, Massimo Frezzotti, Raffaello Nardin, Joel Savarino, Mirko Severi, Andrea Spolaor, Barbara Stenni, and Rita Traversi
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-393, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-393, 2023
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The paper reports the spatial variability of concentration and fluxes of chemical impurities in superficial snow over unexplored area of the East Antarctic ice sheet. Pinatubo and Puyehue-Cordón Caulle volcanic eruptions in non-sea salt sulfate and dust snow pits record were used to achieve the accumulation rates. Deposition (wet, dry and uptake from snow surface) and post deposition processes are constrained. These knowledges are fundamental in Antarctic ice cores stratigraphies interpretation.
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.
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.
Lars Mächler, Daniel Baggenstos, Florian Krauss, Jochen Schmitt, Bernhard Bereiter, Remo Walther, Christoph Reinhard, Béla Tuzson, Lukas Emmenegger, and Hubertus Fischer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 355–372, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-355-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-355-2023, 2023
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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.
Pete D. Akers, Joël Savarino, Nicolas Caillon, Olivier Magand, and Emmanuel Le Meur
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 15637–15657, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15637-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15637-2022, 2022
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Nitrate isotopes in Antarctic ice do not preserve the seasonal isotopic cycles of the atmosphere, which limits their use to study the past. We studied nitrate along an 850 km Antarctic transect to learn how these cycles are changed by sunlight-driven chemistry in the snow. Our findings suggest that the snow accumulation rate and other environmental signals can be extracted from nitrate with the right sampling and analytical approaches.
Bryce F. J. Kelly, Xinyi Lu, Stephen J. Harris, Bruno G. Neininger, Jorg M. Hacker, Stefan Schwietzke, Rebecca E. Fisher, James L. France, Euan G. Nisbet, David Lowry, Carina van der Veen, Malika Menoud, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 15527–15558, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15527-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15527-2022, 2022
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This study explores using the composition of methane of in-flight atmospheric air samples for greenhouse gas inventory verification. The air samples were collected above one of the largest coal seam gas production regions in the world. Adjacent to these gas fields are coal mines, Australia's largest cattle feedlot, and over 1 million grazing cattle. The results are also used to identify methane mitigation opportunities.
Yanzhi Cao, Zhuang Jiang, Becky Alexander, Jihong Cole-Dai, Joel Savarino, Joseph Erbland, and Lei Geng
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 13407–13422, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-13407-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-13407-2022, 2022
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We investigate the potential of ice-core preserved nitrate isotopes as proxies of stratospheric ozone variability by measuring nitrate isotopes in a shallow ice core from the South Pole. The large variability in the snow accumulation rate and its slight increase after the 1970s masked any signals caused by the ozone hole. Moreover, the nitrate oxygen isotope decrease may reflect changes in the atmospheric oxidation environment in the Southern Ocean.
Malika Menoud, Carina van der Veen, Dave Lowry, Julianne M. Fernandez, Semra Bakkaloglu, James L. France, Rebecca E. Fisher, Hossein Maazallahi, Mila Stanisavljević, Jarosław Nęcki, Katarina Vinkovic, Patryk Łakomiec, Janne Rinne, Piotr Korbeń, Martina Schmidt, Sara Defratyka, Camille Yver-Kwok, Truls Andersen, Huilin Chen, and Thomas Röckmann
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 4365–4386, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4365-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4365-2022, 2022
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Emission sources of methane (CH4) can be distinguished with measurements of CH4 stable isotopes. We present new measurements of isotope signatures of various CH4 sources in Europe, mainly anthropogenic, sampled from 2017 to 2020. The present database also contains the most recent update of the global signature dataset from the literature. The dataset improves CH4 source attribution and the understanding of the global CH4 budget.
Albane Barbero, Roberto Grilli, Markus M. Frey, Camille Blouzon, Detlev Helmig, Nicolas Caillon, and Joël Savarino
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 12025–12054, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12025-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12025-2022, 2022
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The high reactivity of the summer Antarctic boundary layer results in part from the emissions of nitrogen oxides produced during photo-denitrification of the snowpack, but its underlying mechanisms are not yet fully understood. The results of this study suggest that more NO2 is produced from the snowpack early in the photolytic season, possibly due to stronger UV irradiance caused by a smaller solar zenith angle near the solstice.
Jinhwa Shin, Jinho Ahn, Jai Chowdhry Beeman, Hun-Gyu Lee, Jaemyeong Mango Seo, and Edward J. Brook
Clim. Past, 18, 2063–2075, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2063-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2063-2022, 2022
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We present a new and highly resolved atmospheric CO2 record from the Siple Dome ice core, Antarctica, over the early Holocene (11.7–7.4 ka). Atmospheric CO2 decreased by ~10 ppm from 10.9 to 7.3 ka, but the decrease was punctuated by local minima at 11.1, 10.1, 9.1, and 8.3 ka. We found millennial CO2 variability of 2–6 ppm, and the millennial CO2 variations correlate with proxies for solar forcing and local climate in the Southern Ocean, North Atlantic, and eastern equatorial Pacific.
Zhuang Jiang, Joel Savarino, Becky Alexander, Joseph Erbland, Jean-Luc Jaffrezo, and Lei Geng
The Cryosphere, 16, 2709–2724, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2709-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2709-2022, 2022
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A record of year-round atmospheric nitrate isotopic composition along with snow nitrate isotopic data from Summit, Greenland, revealed apparent enrichments in nitrogen isotopes in snow nitrate compared to atmospheric nitrate, in addition to a relatively smaller degree of changes in oxygen isotopes. The results suggest that at this site post-depositional processing takes effect, which should be taken into account when interpreting ice-core nitrate isotope records.
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.
Saehee Lim, Meehye Lee, Joel Savarino, and Paolo Laj
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 5099–5115, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5099-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5099-2022, 2022
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We determined δ15N(NO3−) and Δ17O(NO3−) of PM2.5 in Seoul during 2018–2019 and estimated quantitatively the contribution of oxidation pathways to NO3− formation and NOx emission sources. The nighttime pathway played a significant role in NO3− formation during the winter, and its contribution further increased up to 70 % on haze days when PM2.5 was greater than 75 µg m−3. Vehicle emissions were confirmed as a main NO3− source with an increasing contribution from coal combustion in winter.
Xavier Faïn, Rachael H. Rhodes, Philip Place, Vasilii V. Petrenko, Kévin Fourteau, Nathan Chellman, Edward Crosier, Joseph R. McConnell, Edward J. Brook, Thomas Blunier, Michel Legrand, and Jérôme Chappellaz
Clim. Past, 18, 631–647, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-631-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-631-2022, 2022
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Carbon monoxide (CO) is a regulated pollutant and one of the key components determining the oxidizing capacity of the atmosphere. In this study, we analyzed five ice cores from Greenland at high resolution for CO concentrations by coupling laser spectrometry with continuous melting. By combining these new datasets, we produced an upper-bound estimate of past atmospheric CO abundance since preindustrial times for the Northern Hemisphere high latitudes, covering the period from 1700 to 1957 CE.
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.
Stephen M. Platt, Øystein Hov, Torunn Berg, Knut Breivik, Sabine Eckhardt, Konstantinos Eleftheriadis, Nikolaos Evangeliou, Markus Fiebig, Rebecca Fisher, Georg Hansen, Hans-Christen Hansson, Jost Heintzenberg, Ove Hermansen, Dominic Heslin-Rees, Kim Holmén, Stephen Hudson, Roland Kallenborn, Radovan Krejci, Terje Krognes, Steinar Larssen, David Lowry, Cathrine Lund Myhre, Chris Lunder, Euan Nisbet, Pernilla B. Nizzetto, Ki-Tae Park, Christina A. Pedersen, Katrine Aspmo Pfaffhuber, Thomas Röckmann, Norbert Schmidbauer, Sverre Solberg, Andreas Stohl, Johan Ström, Tove Svendby, Peter Tunved, Kjersti Tørnkvist, Carina van der Veen, Stergios Vratolis, Young Jun Yoon, Karl Espen Yttri, Paul Zieger, Wenche Aas, and Kjetil Tørseth
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 3321–3369, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-3321-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-3321-2022, 2022
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Here we detail the history of the Zeppelin Observatory, a unique global background site and one of only a few in the high Arctic. We present long-term time series of up to 30 years of atmospheric components and atmospheric transport phenomena. Many of these time series are important to our understanding of Arctic and global atmospheric composition change. Finally, we discuss the future of the Zeppelin Observatory and emerging areas of future research on the Arctic atmosphere.
Juhi Nagori, Narcisa Nechita-Bândă, Sebastian Oscar Danielache, Masumi Shinkai, Thomas Röckmann, and Maarten Krol
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-68, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2022-68, 2022
Publication in ACP not foreseen
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The sulfur isotopes (32S and 34S) were studied to understand the sources, sinks and processes of carbonyl sulphide (COS) in the atmosphere. COS is an important source of sulfur aerosol in the stratosphere (SSA). Few measurements of COS and SSA exist, but with our 1D model, we were able to match them and show the importance of COS to sulfate formation. Moreover, we are able to highlight some important processes for the COS budget and where measurements may fill a gap in current knowledge.
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.
Laura Crick, Andrea Burke, William Hutchison, Mika Kohno, Kathryn A. Moore, Joel Savarino, Emily A. Doyle, Sue Mahony, Sepp Kipfstuhl, James W. B. Rae, Robert C. J. Steele, R. Stephen J. Sparks, and Eric W. Wolff
Clim. Past, 17, 2119–2137, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-2119-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-2119-2021, 2021
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The ~ 74 ka eruption of Toba was one of the largest eruptions of the last 100 ka. We have measured the sulfur isotopic composition for 11 Toba eruption candidates in two Antarctic ice cores. Sulfur isotopes allow us to distinguish between large eruptions that have erupted material into the stratosphere and smaller ones that reach lower altitudes. Using this we have identified the events most likely to be Toba and place the eruption on the transition into a cold period in the Northern Hemisphere.
Yuzhen Yan, Nicole E. Spaulding, Michael L. Bender, Edward J. Brook, John A. Higgins, Andrei V. Kurbatov, and Paul A. Mayewski
Clim. Past, 17, 1841–1855, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1841-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1841-2021, 2021
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Here we reconstruct the rate of snow accumulation during the Last Interglacial period in an East Antarctic ice core located near the present-day northern edge of the Ross Ice Shelf. We find an order-of-magnitude increase in the accumulation rate during the peak warming in the Last Interglacial. This large increase in mass accumulation is compatible with less ice cover in the Ross Sea, perhaps created by a partly collapsed West Antarctic Ice Sheet, whose stability in a warming world is uncertain.
Malika Menoud, Carina van der Veen, Jaroslaw Necki, Jakub Bartyzel, Barbara Szénási, Mila Stanisavljević, Isabelle Pison, Philippe Bousquet, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13167–13185, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13167-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13167-2021, 2021
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Using measurements of methane isotopes in ambient air and a 3D atmospheric transport model, in Krakow, Poland, we mainly detected fossil-fuel-related sources, coming from coal mining in Silesia and from the use of natural gas in the city. Emission inventories report large emissions from coal mine activity in Silesia, which is in agreement with our measurements. However, methane sources in the urban area of Krakow related to the use of fossil fuels might be underestimated in the inventories.
Zhuang Jiang, Becky Alexander, Joel Savarino, Joseph Erbland, and Lei Geng
The Cryosphere, 15, 4207–4220, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4207-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-4207-2021, 2021
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We used a snow photochemistry model (TRANSITS) to simulate the seasonal nitrate snow profile at Summit, Greenland. Comparisons between model outputs and observations suggest that at Summit post-depositional processing is active and probably dominates the snowpack δ15N seasonality. We also used the model to assess the degree of snow nitrate loss and the consequences in its isotopes at present and in the past, which helps for quantitative interpretations of ice-core nitrate records.
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.
Xinyi Lu, Stephen J. Harris, Rebecca E. Fisher, James L. France, Euan G. Nisbet, David Lowry, Thomas Röckmann, Carina van der Veen, Malika Menoud, Stefan Schwietzke, and Bryce F. J. Kelly
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10527–10555, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10527-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10527-2021, 2021
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Many coal seam gas (CSG) facilities in the Surat Basin, Australia, are adjacent to other sources of methane, including agricultural, urban, and natural seeps. This makes it challenging to estimate the amount of methane being emitted into the atmosphere from CSG facilities. This research demonstrates that measurements of the carbon and hydrogen stable isotopic composition of methane can distinguish between and apportion methane emissions from CSG facilities, cattle, and many other sources.
Sarah Albertin, Joël Savarino, Slimane Bekki, Albane Barbero, and Nicolas Caillon
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10477–10497, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10477-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10477-2021, 2021
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We report an efficient method to collect atmospheric NO2 adapted for multi-isotopic analysis and present the first NO2 triple oxygen and double nitrogen isotope measurements. Atmospheric samplings carried out in Grenoble, France, highlight the NO2 isotopic signature sensitivity to the local NOx emissions and chemical regimes. These preliminary results are very promising for using the combination of Δ17O and δ15N of NO2 as a probe of the atmospheric NOx emissions and chemistry.
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Short summary
Nitrous oxide (N2O) produced in dust-rich Antarctic ice complicates the reconstruction of past atmospheric levels from ice core records. Using isotope analysis, we show that N2O forms from two nitrogen precursors, one being nitrate. For the first time, we demonstrate that the site preference (SP) of N2O reflects the isotopic difference between these precursors, not the production pathway, which challenges the common interpretation of SP.
Nitrous oxide (N2O) produced in dust-rich Antarctic ice complicates the reconstruction of past...
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