An NOy* Algorithm for SOLVE

Abstract

De-nitrification and excess re-nitrification was widely observed by ER-2 instruments in the Arctic vortex during SOLVE in winter/spring 2000. Analyses of these events requires a knowledge of the initial or pre-vortex state of the sampled air masses. The canonical relationship of NOy to the long-lived tracer N2O observed in the unperturbed stratosphere is generally used for this purpose. In this paper we will attempt to establish the current unperturbed NOy:N2O relationship (NOy* algorithm) using the ensemble of extra-vortex data from in situ instruments flying on the ER-2 and DC-8, and from the Mark IV remote measurements on the OMS balloon. Initial analysis indicates a change in the SOLVE NOy* from the values predicted by the 1994 Northern Hemisphere NOy* algorithm which was derived from the observations in the ASHOE/MAESA campaign.