Study on Horizontal Relative Diffusion in theTroposphere and Lower Stratosphere

The behaviour of relative diffusion theory and Gifford’s random-force theory for long-range atmospheric diffusion is examined. When a puff scale is smaller than the Lagrangian length scale, √2KTL, an accelerative relative diffusion region exists, i.e., σy∝ t 3/2. While the puff diffusion enters a two-dimensional turbulence region, in which the diffusion scale is larger than 500 km, or time scale is larger than 1 day, divergence and convergence are main cause of horizontal diffusion. Between the two above-mentioned regimes, diffusion deviation is given by σy = √2KT. The large-scale horizontal relative diffusion parameters were obtained by analyzing the data of radioactive cloud width collected in air nuclear tests. Key words Tropospheric and lower stratospheric diffusion - Relative diffusion - Large scale turbulence - Nuclear explosion clouds This work is sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No. 49505064.The author would like to thank Prof. Chen Jiayi Department of Geophysics of Peking University and Dr. Cai Xiaoming School of Geography and Environmental Sciences of Birmingham University for their helpful discussions.

Gravity Wave Activity and Stratosphere-Troposphere Exchange During Typhoon Molave(2020)

To investigate the stratosphere-troposphere exchange(STE)process induced by the gravity waves(GWs)caused by Typhoon Molave(2020)in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere,we analyzed the ERA5 reanalysis data provided by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts and the CMA Tropical Cyclone Best Track Dataset.We also adopted the mesoscale forecast model Weather Research and Forecasting model V4.3 for numerical simulation.Most of the previous studies were about typhoon-induced STE and typhoon-induced GWs,while our research focused on the STE caused by typhoon-induced gravity waves.Our analysis shows that most of the time,the gravity wave signal of Typhoon Molave appeared below the tropopause.It was stronger on the east side of the typhoon center(10°-20°N,110°-120°E)than on the west side,suggesting an eastward tilted structure with height increase.When the GWs in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region on the west side of the typhoon center broke up,it produced strong turbulence,resulting in stratosphere-troposphere exchange.At this time,the average potential vorticity vertical flux increased with the average ozone mass mixing ratio.The gravity wave events and STE process simulated by the WRF model were basically consistent with the results of ERA5 reanalysis data,but the time of gravity wave breaking was different.This study indicates that after the breaking of the GWs induced by typhoons,turbulent mixing will also be generated,and thus the STE.

Inertial gravity wave parameters for the lower stratosphere from radiosonde data over China

Characterization of gravity wave （GW） parameters for the stratosphere is critical for global atmospheric circulation models. These parameters are mainly determined from measurements. Here, we investigate variation in inertial GW activity with season and latitude in the lower stratosphere （18-25 km） over China, using radiosonde data with a high vertical resolution over a 2-year period. Eight radiosonde stations were selected across China, with a latitudinal range of 22°-49°N. Analyses show that the GW energy in the lower stratosphere over China has obvious seasonal variation and a meridional distribution, similar to other regions of the globe. The GW energy is highest in winter, and lowest in summer; it decreases with increasing latitude. Velocity perturbations with longitude and latitude are almost the same, indicating that GW energy is horizontally isotropic. Typically, 85% of the vertical wavelength distribution is concentrated between elevations of 1 and 3 km, with a mean value of 2 kin; it is almost constant with latitude. Over 80% of all the horizontal wavelengths occur in the range 100-800 km, with a mean value of 450 km; they show a weak decrease with increasing latitude, yielding a difference of about 40 km over the 22°-49°N range. The ratio of horizontal wavelength over vertical wavelength is about 200：1, which implies that inertial GWs in the lower stratosphere propagate along nearly horizontal planes. Ratios of their intrinsic frequency to the Coriolis parameter decrease with increasing latitude; most values are between 1 and 2, with a mean value of 1.5. Study of the propagation directions of GW energy shows that upward fractions account for over 60% at all stations. In contrast, the horizontal propagation direction is significantly anisotropic, and is mainly along prevailing wind directions; this anisotropy weakens with increasing latitude.

The Impact of Cut-off Lows on Ozone in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere over Changchun from Ozonesonde Observations

In situ measurements of the vertical structure of ozone were made in Changchun （43.53°N, 125.13°E）, China, by the Institute of Atmosphere Physics, in the summers of 2010-13. Analysis of the 89 validated ozone profiles shows the vari- ation of ozone concentration in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere （UTLS） caused by cut-off lows （COLs） over Changchun. During the COL events, an increase of the ozone concentration and a lower height of the tropopause are observed. Backward simulations with a trajectory model show that the ozone-rich airmass brought by the COL is from Siberia. A case study proves that stratosphere-troposphere exchange （STE） occurs in the COL. The ozone-rich air mass transported from the stratosphere to the troposphere first becomes unstable, then loses its high ozone concentration. This process usually happens during the decay stage of COLs. In order to understand the influence of COLs on the ozone in the UTLS, statistical analysis of the ozone profiles within COLs, and other profiles, are employed. The results indicate that the ozone concentrations of the in-COL profiles are significantly higher than those of the other profiles between ±4 km around the tropopause. The COLs induce an increase in UTLS column ozone by 32% on average. Meanwhile, the COLs depress the lapse-rate tropopause （LRT）/dynamical tropopause height by 1.4/1.7 km and cause the atmosphere above the tropopause to be less stable. The influence of COLs is durable because the increased ozone concentration lasts at least one day after the COL has passed over Changchun. Furthermore, the relative coefficient between LRT height and lower stratosphere （LS） column ozone is -0.62, which implies a positive correlation between COL strength and LS ozone concentration.

On the Temporal and Spatial Structure of Troposphere-toStratosphere Transport in the Lowermost Stratosphere over the Asian Monsoon Region during Boreal Summer

This study produced a novel characterization of the troposphere-to-stratosphere transport （TST） over the Asian monsoon region during boreal summer, using a comprehensive analysis of 60-day backward trajectories initialized in the stratosphere. The trajectory datasets were derived from the high-resolution Lagrangian particle dispersion model （FLEXPART） simulation driven by the wind fields acquired from the National Center for Environmental Prediction （NCEP）. The results indicate that the distribution of residence time （tTST） of tropopause-crossing trajectories in the lowermost stratosphere represents a horizontal signature of the Asian summer monsoon. Vertically, the distribution of tTST can be roughly separated into two layers： a consistent lower layer with tTST 〈5 days forming a narrow band, corresponding to a layer-3 km thick following the location of the tropopause, and an upper layer at a larger distance from the local tropopause. The maximum residence time was -20 days, especially within the Asian high anticyclone consistent with its confinement effects. In general, the overall geographical distribution of dehydration points was not coincident with the location of tropopause crossing. TST trajectories, which were initialized in the stratosphere, underwent their Lagrangian cold points mostly in the tropics and subtropics 1 4 days after the TST event; they were characterized by a wide range of temperature differences, with a mean value of 3-12 K. The vertical extent of the influence of tropospheric intrusion on the Asian monsoon region in the stratosphere exhibited a peak at -16.5-18.5 km, and the uppermost height was -21 km.

On the Nonlinear Response of Lower Stratospheric Ozone to NO_x and ClO_x Perturbations for Different CH_4 Sources

The impact of sulfate aerosol, ClOx and NOx perturbations for two different magnitudes of CH4 sources on lower stratospheric ozone is studied by using a heterogeneous chemical system that consists of 19 species belonging to 5 chemical families （oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, chlorine and carbon）. The results show that the present modeled photochemical system can present several different solutions, for instance, periodic states and multi-equilibrium states appearing in turn under certain parameter domains, through chlorine chemistry and nitrogen chemistry together with sulfate aerosol as well as the increasing magnitude of CH4 sources. The existence of catastrophic transitions could produce a dramatic reduction in the ozone concentration with the increase of external sources.

Long-Term Behaviour of Temperature in the Lower Atmosphere of Niamey a West African Tropical Station

This paper highlights the global warming of the lower atmosphere of West African tropical area using in-situ data. The study is based on the analysis of 500-m interval vertical profiles of radiosonde temperature above Niamey (13.47°N;2.16°E) a sub-Saharan meteorological station. The annual cycle of surface temperatures shows seasonally two peaks located in April/May and in October and two minimum in December/January and August respectively. In the mid-troposphere (between 5 km and 10 km height), time series of monthly mean temperatures from January 2001 to December 2018, shows an annual variability with a slight downward trend of -0.036°C per decade. In the lower stratosphere (25 - 30 km altitude) a cooling of -0.64°C/decade is observed. Temperatures time series also highlight the presence of two breaking points associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. When performing a separation regarding Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) time series, model parameters of the linear regression indicate a tropospheric warming during the neutral and La Niña phases and a stratospheric cooling. The analysis of the lower stratosphere zonal wind highlights different behaviours of the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) during the neutral and La Niña phases.

Features of Ozone Mini-Hole Events over the Tibetan Plateau

Based on TOMS total ozone data and SCIAMACHY ozone profile data, climatology of the ozone minihole events over the Tibetan Plateau and ozone vertical structure variations during an ozone mini-hole event in December 2003 are analyzed. The analyses show that before 1990 ozone mini-hole events only occurred in November-December of 1987 but that the number of events increases after 1990. These events only occur from October through February, with maximum occurrence frequency in December. During the event in December 2003, the decrease in total ozone of over 20% is mainly caused by the ozone loss in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region due to the horizontal transport of low ozone from the lower latitude subtropics and the uplift of low ozone from the lower troposphere over the Tibetan Plateau.

Correction of temperature influence on the wind retrieval from a mobile Rayleigh Doppler lidar

A mobile Rayleigh Doppler lidar based on double-edge technique is implemented for simultaneously observing wind and temperature at heights of 15 km-60 km away from ground.Before the inversion of the Doppler shift due to wind,the Rayleigh response function should be calculated,which is a convolution of the laser spectrum,Rayleigh backscattering function,and the transmission function of the Fabry-Perot interferometer used as the frequency discriminator in the lidar.An analysis of the influence of the temperature on the accuracy of the Une-of-sight winds shows that real-time temperature profiles are needed because the bandwidth of the Rayleigh backscattering function is temperature-dependent.An integration method is employed in the inversion of the temperature,where the convergence of this method and the high signal-to-noise ratio below 60 km ensure the accuracy and precision of the temperature profiles inverted.Then,real-time and on-site temperature profiles are applied to correct the wind instead of using temperature profiles from a numerical prediction system or atmosphere model.The corrected wind profiles show satisfactory agreement with the wind profiles acquired from radiosondes,proving the reliability of the method.

A New Weighting Function for Estimating Microwave Sounding Unit Channel 4 Temperature Trends Simulated by CMIP5 Climate Models

A new static microwave sounding unit （MSU） channel 4 weighting function is obtained from using Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project, Phase 5 （CMIP5） historical multimodel simulations as inputs into the fast Radiative Transfer Model for TOVS （RTTOV v10）. For the same CMIP5 model simulations, it is demonstrated that the computed MSU channel 4 brightness temperature （T4） trends in the lower stratosphere over both the globe and the tropics using the proposed weighting function are equivalent to those calculated by RTTOV, but show more cooling than those computed using the traditional UAH （University of Alabama at Huntsville） or RSS （Remote Sensing Systems in Santa Rosa, California） static weighting functions. The new static weighting function not only reduces the computational cost, but also reveals reasons why trends using a radiative transfer model are different from those using a traditional static weighting function. This study also shows that CMIP5 model simulated T4 trends using the traditional UAH or RSS static weighting functions show less cooling than satellite observations over the globe and the tropics. Although not completely removed, this difference can be reduced using the proposed weighting function to some extent, especially over the tropics. This work aims to explore the reasons for the trend differences and to see to what extent they are related to the inaccurate weighting functions. This would also help distinguish other sources for trend errors and thus better understand the climate change in the lower stratosphere.

Regional applicability of seven meteorological drought indices in China

The definition of a drought index is the foundation of drought research.However,because of the complexity of drought,there is no a unified drought index appropriate for different drought types and objects at the same time.Therefore,it is crucial to determine the regional applicability of various drought indices.Using terrestrial water storage obtained from the Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment,and the observed soil moisture and streamflow in China,we evaluated the regional applicability of seven meteorological drought indices:the Palmer Drought Severity Index(PDSI),modified PDSI(PDSI_CN) based on observations in China,self-calibrating PDSI(scPDSI),Surface Wetness Index(SWI),Standardized Precipitation Index(SPI),Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index(SPEI),and soil moisture simulations conducted using the community land model driven by observed atmospheric forcing(CLM3.5/ObsFC).The results showed that the scPDSI is most appropriate for China.However,it should be noted that the scPDSI reduces the value range slightly compared with the PDSI and PDSI_CN;thus,the classification of dry and wet conditions should be adjusted accordingly.Some problems might exist when using the PDSI and PDSI_CN in humid and arid areas because of the unsuitability of empiricalparameters.The SPI and SPEI are more appropriate for humid areas than arid and semiarid areas.This is because contributions of temperature variation to drought are neglected in the SPI,but overestimated in the SPEI,when potential evapotranspiration is estimated by the Thornthwaite method in these areas.Consequently,the SPI and SPEI tend to induce wetter and drier results,respectively.The CLM3.5/ObsFC is suitable for China before 2000,but not for arid and semiarid areas after 2000.Consistent with other drought indices,the SWI shows similar interannual and decadal change characteristics in detecting annual dry/wet variations.Although the long-term trends of drought areas in China detected by these seven drought indices during 1961-2013 are consistent,obvious differences exist among the values of drought areas,which might be attributable to the definitions of the drought indices in addition to climatic change.

Continuous Ozone Depletion over Antarctica After 2000 and Its Relationship with the Polar Vortex

Observations have shown highly variable ozone depletion over the Antarctic in the 2000s, which could affect the long-term ozone trend in this region as well as the global ozone recovery. By using the total column ozone data （1979-2011）, interannual variation of the springtime Antarctic ozone tow is investigated, together with its relationship with the polar vortex evolution in the lower stratosphere. The results show that springtime Antarctic ozone depletion has continued in the 2000s, seemingly contradicting the consensus view of a global ozone recovery expected at the beginning of the 21st century. The spring Antarctic polar vortex in the lower stratosphere is much stronger in the 2000s than before, with a larger area, delayed breakup time, and greater longevity during 2000-2011. Fhrther analyses show that the recent continuation of springtime Antarctic ozone depletion could be largely attributed to the abnormal variation of the Antarctic polar vortex.