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Observation of Trace Gases Seasonal Variability in the Marine Boundary Layer over the Atlantic Ocean during the ACTIVATE Field Campaign
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  • Yonghoon Choi,
  • Glenn Diskin,
  • John Nowak,
  • Joshua DiGangi,
  • Mario Rana,
  • Kenneth Thornhill
Yonghoon Choi
Science Systems and Applications, Inc. Hampton

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Glenn Diskin
NASA Langley Research Ctr
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John Nowak
NASA Langley Research Center
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Joshua DiGangi
NASA Langley Research Center
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Mario Rana
NASA Langley Research Center
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Kenneth Thornhill
NASA Langley Research Center
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Abstract

High resolution in-situ measurements of carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and water vapor (H2O) were made onboard the NASA HU-25 aircraft during the ACTIVATE (Aerosol Cloud meteorology Interactions oVer the western Atlantic Experiment) campaign during 2020 and 2021 in different seasons (winter through summer) over the mid-latitude western Atlantic Ocean. As most of the flights focused on the marine boundary layer (MBL) during the campaign, these trace gas observations are an excellent data set to examine seasonal variability of trace gas background values in the MBL without the influence of localized point sources. We will describe the variability of these trace gases in the MBL background by filtering out concentrated point sources using back trajectory analysis along with trace gas ratios. Additionally, the ocean is a significant sink of anthropogenic CO2 capturing about one quarter of total anthropogenic carbon. By looking at the MBL CO2 variation as a function of season, we discuss observed changes in CO2 uptake over the ocean. These high accuracy observations of trace gas backgrounds in the MBL along with characterizing seasonal effects on oceanic sequestering of anthropogenic CO2 will improve the understanding of seasonal variations and change in climate and inverse modelling over the ocean.