Concentrations of CH4, CO, CO2, H2, H2O and N2O in the upper stratosphere
On 23 May 1973 a cryogenic air sampler was flown on an Aerobee rocket from White Sands Missile Range. A large air sample was collected between 40 and 50 km altitude and successfully recovered for water vapor and trace gas analysis. The results were as follows: water vapor, 4.0 (+1.3 or - 0.9) ppmV; methane, 0.37 + or - 0.01 ppmV; molecular hydrogen, 0.47 + or - 0.02 ppmV; carbon monoxide, 0.05 + or - 0.01 ppmV; carbon dioxide, 316.2 + or - 2.8 ppmV; and nitrous oxide, 3 + or - 7 ppb.