VOCs in the Troposphere Retrieved from ACE Satellite Measurements
Lead Research Organisation:
University of York
Department Name: Chemistry
Abstract
The emission of organic molecules along with nitrogen oxides is responsible for air pollution. Air quality is perhaps the most important issue in atmospheric science because of its negative effect on human health and ecosystems. Trace organic molecules lead to the production of tropospheric ozone, which is a major factor in anthropogenic climate change. We propose to use measurements from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE) satellite to study organic molecules in the free troposphere on a regional and global scale. We plan to retrieve the profiles of acetone and propane from observations made with the infrared Fourier transform spectrometer on-board ACE. The necessary spectroscopic data for propane will be obtained from laboratory measurements made primarily at the NERC-supported Molecular Spectroscopy Facility at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. A research version of the operational ACE retrieval code will be used to obtain atmospheric profiles. The set of global measurements from ACE will be compared with several of chemical transport models, with the goal of improving model predictions. These chemical models are useful in predicting climate change.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Peter Bernath (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Allen N
(2011)
Acetonitrile (CH3CN) infrared absorption cross sections in the 3µm region
in Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer
Allen N
(2009)
Global carbon tetrachloride distributions obtained from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE)
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Barkley M
(2008)
Global distributions of carbonyl sulfide in the upper troposphere and stratosphere
in Geophysical Research Letters
Dufour G
(2009)
Global upper-tropospheric formaldehyde: seasonal cycles observed by the ACE-FTS satellite instrument
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Dufour G
(2016)
Seasonal variations of acetone in the upper troposphere-lower stratosphere of the northern midlatitudes as observed by ACE-FTS
in Journal of Molecular Spectroscopy
Fu D
(2009)
First global observations of atmospheric COClF from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment mission
in Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer
González Abad G
(2011)
Ethane, ethyne and carbon monoxide concentrations in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere from ACE and GEOS-Chem: a comparison study
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
González Abad G
(2009)
Global distribution of upper tropospheric formic acid from the ACE-FTS
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Harrison J
(2012)
First remote sensing observations of trifluoromethane (HFC-23) in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
Harrison J
(2010)
Infrared absorption cross sections for ethane (C2H6) in the 3µm region
in Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer
Description | Our spectroscopic data for example has been used by other groups for in situ and remote sensing of organic molecules. These species are responsible for air pollution. |
First Year Of Impact | 2012 |
Sector | Education,Environment |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |