Articles | Volume 19, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-447-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-447-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Model evaluation paper
| 
15 Jan 2026
Model evaluation paper |
| 15 Jan 2026
| 15 Jan 2026
Evaluation of atmospheric sulfur dioxide simulated with the EMAC (version 2.55) Chemistry–Climate Model using satellite and ground-based observations
Ismail Makroum
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany
Patrick Jöckel
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany
Martin Dameris
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany
Nicolas Theys
The Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, Brussels, Belgium
Johannes De Leeuw
The National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics, Trieste, Italy
The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy
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Lorenzo Fabris, Nicolas Theys, Lieven Clarisse, Bruno Franco, Mike Burton, Benjamin Esse, Jonas Vlietinck, Huan Yu, Hugues Brenot, Thomas Danckaert, and Michel Van Roozendael
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5282, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5282, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP).
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In this study, we present the first global SO2 plume-height dataset from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI), covering 2018–2025. We evaluate the product against independent observations from the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) and SO2 height estimates from the PlumeTraj toolkit. Overall, the results show good agreement and highlight the complementarity of these approaches for monitoring SO2 emissions and their atmospheric and climatic impacts.
Sean M. Davis, William T. Ball, Yue Jia, Gabriel Chiodo, Justin A. Alsing, James Keeble, Hideharu Akiyoshi, Carlo Arosio, Ewa M. Bednarz, Andreas Chrysanthou, Melanie Coldewey-Egbers, Robert Damadeo, Sandip Dhomse, Mohamadou A. Diallo, Simone Dietmuller, Roland Eichinger, Stacey Frith, Birgit Hassler, Michaela I. Hegglin, Daan Hubert, Patrick Jöckel, Béatrice Josse, Natalya Kramarova, Diego Loyola, Eliane Maillard Barras, Marion Marchand, Olaf Morgenstern, David Plummer, Robert W. Portmann, Karen H. Rosenlof, Alexei Rozanov, Viktoria F. Sofieva, Johannes Staehelin, Timofei Sukhodolov, Kleareti Tourpali, Ronald J. Van der A, H. J. Ray Wang, Krzysztof Wargan, Shingo Watanabe, Mark Weber, Jeannette D. Wild, Yousuke Yamashita, and Jerry Ziemke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 26, 13817–13843, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-13817-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-13817-2026, 2026
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This study investigates tropical ozone changes in models and satellite observations to determine how well they agree and whether observations can constrain model projections. At some levels, satellite records disagree significantly on the magnitude of ozone changes. While early and late 21st century trends are correlated across models, suggesting a potential emergent constraint, the spread in observations means they are unable to provide guidance on the credibility of model projections.
Shangyi Liu, Cathy Clerbaux, Anne Boynard, Mingjian Gu, Chengli Qi, Bruno Franco, Lieven Clarisse, Shan Han, Mengya Sheng, Nicolas Theys, and Zhao-Cheng Zeng
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5017, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-5017, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP).
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The March 2026 Tehran refinery explosions released massive amounts of toxic sulfur dioxide gas. We used multiple satellites to track this plume, discovering that intense fires pushed the pollution high into the atmosphere, causing it to travel across continents for days. Current air quality forecast models completely missed this major event. This highlights the urgent need to use advanced satellites to monitor pollution from armed conflicts to assess global climate risks.
Lieven Clarisse, Bruno Franco, Lorenzo Fabris, Nicolas Theys, Juliette Hadji-Lazaro, Daniel Hurtmans, Cathy Clerbaux, and Pierre Coheur
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 18, 6667–6706, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-6667-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-6667-2026, 2026
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We present a 19-year (2007–2026) global record of atmospheric sulphur dioxide (SO2) abundances and plume altitudes measured twice a day from space by the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometers (IASI). The first part of the paper covers the retrieval methodology and detailed comparisons with other satellite measurements. The second part presents an overview of the dataset, offering in particular an analysis of the temporal evolution and vertical distribution of volcanic SO2.
Lianet Hernández Pardo, Joachim Curtius, Patrick Jöckel, J. Moritz Menken, Christopher Pöhlker, Mira Pöhlker, and Anna Possner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 26, 12275–12293, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-12275-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-12275-2026, 2026
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Many tiny particles are formed high in the tropical atmosphere, but their impact lower down is unclear. We studied how these particles move downward using long-term computer simulations. We found that particles can reach middle levels of the atmosphere within a week, carried by winds. These results help us understand how pollution and clouds might change as particles spread around the world.
Matthias Kohl, Christoph Brühl, Holger Tost, Christos Xenofontos, Theodoros Christoudias, Sergey Gromov, Oliver Appel, Stephan Borrmann, Adam Bourassa, Pedro Campunzano-Jost, Yafang Cheng, Oliver Eppers, Karl D. Froyd, Bruna A. Holanda, Jose L. Jimenez, Patrick Jöckel, Philipp Joppe, Katharina Kaiser, Joseph M. Katich, Klaus Klingmüller, Franziska Köllner, Agnieszka Kupc, Anna Martin, Christopher Pöhlker, Mira L. Pöhlker, Ulrich Pöschl, Landon Rieger, Samuel Ruhl, Gregory P. Schill, Johannes Schneider, Christiane Schulz, Joshua P. Schwarz, Alexandra P. Tsimpidi, Ryan Vella, Christina J. Williamson, Yifan Yang, Daniel Zawada, Jos Lelieveld, and Andrea Pozzer
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-3649, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-3649, 2026
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Aerosols are crucial for Earth's climate, yet their vertical distribution remains poorly understood. We present first consistent global simulations of aerosol distributions and composition from the Earth's surface to the stratosphere, validated by extensive observations. Key findings include a global minimum in aerosol mass in the free troposphere, a significant contribution of organic aerosol in the lower stratosphere, and limited transport of primary particles to the stratosphere.
Benjamin Weyland, Simon Rosanka, Domenico Taraborrelli, Birger Bohn, Andreas Zahn, Florian Obersteiner, Eric Förster, Mariano Mertens, Patrick Jöckel, Helmut Ziereis, Katharina Kaiser, Horst Fischer, John N. Crowley, Nijing Wang, Achim Edtbauer, Jonathan Williams, Maria Dolores Andrés Hernández, John P. Burrows, Flora Kluge, Meike K. Rotermund, Andre Butz, and Klaus Pfeilsticker
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 26, 6825–6856, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-6825-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-6825-2026, 2026
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The destruction by sunlight of nitrous acid (HONO) produces the so-called detergent of the atmosphere. HONO has been measured in concentrations which exceed predictions based on known chemistry for decades. Several reactions have been proposed which may explain this excess HONO. This study reports on airborne measurements of HONO; the observations exceed predictions and form a C-shaped profile in the troposphere. Together with a host of other measurements, various reactions are investigated.
Christine Frömming, Volker Grewe, Sigrun Matthes, Simone Dietmüller, Patrick Peter, Katrin Dahlmann, and Patrick Jöckel
J. Env. Com. Air Transp. Sys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/jecats-2026-7, https://doi.org/10.5194/jecats-2026-7, 2026
Revised manuscript under review for JECATS
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Aviation non-CO2 climate effects could be reduced through rerouting using Climate Change Functions (CCFs) and its surrogate aCCFs. This study expands CCFs regionally and seasonally and enables a comparison with aCCFs. ACCFs simplify complex processes but reproduce magnitudes and most gradients, though they underestimate variability compared to detailed CCF simulations and limitations to certain altitudes were revealed. The present study promotes future development of refined and extended aCCFs.
Marta Abalos, Thomas Birner, Andreas Chrysanthou, Sean Davis, Alvaro de la Cámara, Sandip Dhomse, Hella Garny, Michaela I. Hegglin, Daan Hubert, Oksana Ivaniha, James Keeble, Marianna Linz, Daniele Minganti, Jessica Neu, David Plummer, Laura Saunders, Kasturi Shah, Gabriele Stiller, Kleareti Tourpali, Darryn Waugh, Nathan Luke Abraham, Hideharu Akiyoshi, Martyn P. Chipperfield, Patrick Jöckel, Béatrice Josse, Marion Marchand, Patrick Martineau, Olaf Morgenstern, Timofei Sukhodolov, Shingo Watanabe, and Yousuke Yamashita
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 26, 5249–5291, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-5249-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-5249-2026, 2026
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Accurate representation of stratospheric transport in Chemistry-Climate Models is essential for reliable climate projections. This study evaluates three generations of models using observational data and reanalyses, identifying persistent biases and their potential causes. Some biases persist or even worsen in newer models. These findings highlight key limitations and inform efforts to improve models and advance understanding through process-based studies and enhanced observations.
Shangyi Liu, Yingjun Zheng, Mengya Sheng, Lu Lee, Chengli Qi, Feng Lu, Bruno Franco, Lieven Clarisse, Cathy Clerbaux, Nicolas Theys, Jhoon Kim, and Zhao-Cheng Zeng
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1745, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1745, 2026
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Volcanic sulfur dioxide evolves rapidly after an eruption, which makes it challenging to monitor. Taking the 2024 Kanlaon eruption as a case study, we propose using a constellation of GEO and LEO satellites to track SO2 mass and layer height at high frequency. In particular, we present the first quantitative SO2 retrieval from a GEO hyperspectral infrared sounder (FY-4B/GIIRS). This research provides a vital blueprint for the future global monitoring of volcanic events.
Jin Maruhashi, Mattia Righi, Monica Sharma, Johannes Hendricks, Patrick Jöckel, Volker Grewe, and Irene C. Dedoussi
Geosci. Model Dev., 19, 2747–2784, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-2747-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-19-2747-2026, 2026
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Aerosol-cloud interactions remain a major source of uncertainty in assessing aviation's net climate impact. We develop and evaluate a new Lagrangian tagging model that tracks aviation-emitted SO2 and H2SO4 as they are chemically transformed into SO4 aerosols and transported throughout the atmosphere. This development allows the identification of atmospheric regions with elevated potential for aerosol–cloud interactions driven by SO4 from aircraft.
Lorenzo Fabris, Nicolas Theys, Lieven Clarisse, Bruno Franco, Jonas Vlietinck, Huan Yu, Hugues Brenot, Thomas Danckaert, Pascal Hedelt, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 19, 1801–1824, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-1801-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-1801-2026, 2026
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In this study, we developed an improved algorithm to retrieve the sulfur dioxide plume height and column density from the spectral band 2 of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument onboard the Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite. We tested its sensitivity to various conditions and applied it to real volcanic eruptions. Overall, our approach shows high precision, accuracy, and sensitivity, and the results are consistent with other satellite measurements.
Jan-Lukas Tirpitz, Nathaniel Brockway, Santo Fedele Colosimo, Robert Spurr, Matt Christi, Samuel Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Vijay Natraj, Nicolas Theys, Johnathan Hair, Taylor Shingler, Rodney Weber, Ruchen Zhu, Jack Dibb, Richard Moore, Elizabeth Wiggins, and Jochen Stutz
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5541, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5541, 2026
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This study applies a novel remote sensing algorithm to airborne radiation measurements performed in wildfire plumes, to retrieve the absorptive properties of biomass burning aerosols. The results provide new insights on the magnitude, wavelength dependence, and atmospheric aging of the imaginary refractive index, volume absorption cross-section, and single scattering albedo of the smoke particles. Furthermore, potential and limitations of the applied method are discussed.
Johannes Degen, Bianca C. Baier, Patrick Jöckel, J. Moritz Menken, Tanja J. Schuck, Colm Sweeney, and Andreas Engel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 15741–15763, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-15741-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-15741-2025, 2025
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We investigate the distribution of CO2 in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere using both, observations and an atmospheric model. Simulating an artificial tracer, we separate CO2 seasonality from long-term trend and transport variability. We found that patterns in the seasonal signal are attributable to large-scale transport features like the subtropical jet or the Brewer-Dobson circulation. Being a powerful diagnostic tool we recommend to use this tracer for model intercomparisons.
Catherine Acquah, Laura Stecher, Mariano Mertens, and Patrick Jöckel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 13665–13686, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-13665-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-13665-2025, 2025
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Short-lived ozone precursor species influence the formation of ozone and also the atmospheric lifetime of methane. Our study assesses the effect of two widely used emission inventories of these species on ozone and the methane lifetime. Our results indicate tropospheric ozone and methane lifetime differences of around 4 % even though both emission inventories aim at representing present-day conditions. We further attribute the differences to emissions of individual sectors, e.g. land traffic.
Huan Yu, Isabelle De Smedt, Nicolas Theys, Maarten Sneep, Pepijn Veefkind, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 4131–4163, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-4131-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-4131-2025, 2025
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We introduce a new cloud retrieval algorithm using the O2–O2 absorption band at 477 nm to generate harmonized cloud datasets from OMI and TROPOMI. The algorithm improves upon the OMI O2–O2 operational cloud algorithm in several aspects. The new approach improves consistency in cloud parameters and NO2 retrievals between two sensors.
William J. Collins, Fiona M. O'Connor, Rachael E. Byrom, Øivind Hodnebrog, Patrick Jöckel, Mariano Mertens, Gunnar Myhre, Matthias Nützel, Dirk Olivié, Ragnhild Bieltvedt Skeie, Laura Stecher, Larry W. Horowitz, Vaishali Naik, Gregory Faluvegi, Ulas Im, Lee T. Murray, Drew Shindell, Kostas Tsigaridis, Nathan Luke Abraham, and James Keeble
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 9031–9060, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-9031-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-9031-2025, 2025
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We used 7 climate models that include atmospheric chemistry and find that in a scenario with weak controls on air quality, the warming effects (over 2015 to 2050) of decreases in ozone-depleting substances and increases in air quality pollutants are approximately equal and would make ozone the second highest contributor to warming over this period. We find that for stratospheric ozone recovery, the standard measure of climate effects underestimates a more comprehensive measure.
Matthias Kohl, Christoph Brühl, Jennifer Schallock, Holger Tost, Patrick Jöckel, Adrian Jost, Steffen Beirle, Michael Höpfner, and Andrea Pozzer
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 3985–4007, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3985-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3985-2025, 2025
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SO2 from explosive volcanic eruptions reaching the stratosphere can oxidize and form sulfur aerosols, potentially persisting for several years. We developed a new submodel, Explosive Volcanic ERuptions (EVER), that seamlessly includes stratospheric volcanic SO2 emissions in global numerical simulations based on a novel standard historical model setup, successfully evaluated with satellite observations. Sensitivity studies on the Nabro eruption in 2011 evaluate different emission methods.
Patrick Peter, Sigrun Matthes, Christine Frömming, Patrick Jöckel, Luca Bugliaro, Andreas Giez, Martina Krämer, and Volker Grewe
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 5911–5934, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5911-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5911-2025, 2025
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Our study examines how well the global climate model EMAC (ECHAM/MESSy Atmospheric Chemistry) predicts contrail formation by analysing temperature and humidity – two key factors for contrail development and persistence. The model underestimates temperature, leading to an overprediction of contrail formation and larger ice-supersaturated regions. Adjusting the model improves temperature accuracy but adds uncertainties. Better predictions of contrail formation areas can help optimise flight tracks to reduce aviation's climate effect.
Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez, Heidi Huntrieser, Patrick Jöckel, and Eric J. Bucsela
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 5557–5575, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5557-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5557-2025, 2025
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Lightning plays a significant role in tropospheric chemistry by producing substantial amounts of nitrogen oxides. According to recent estimates, thunderstorms that produce a higher lightning frequency rate also produce less nitrogen oxide per flash. We implemented the dependency of nitrogen oxide production per flash on lightning flash frequency in a chemical atmospheric model.
Laura Stecher, Franziska Winterstein, Patrick Jöckel, Michael Ponater, Mariano Mertens, and Martin Dameris
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 5133–5158, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5133-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-5133-2025, 2025
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Methane, the second most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas, is chemically decomposed in the atmosphere. The chemical sink of atmospheric methane is not constant but depends on the temperature and on the abundance of its reaction partners. In this study, we use a global chemistry–climate model to assess the feedback of atmospheric methane induced by changes in the chemical sink in a warming climate and its implications for the chemical composition and the surface air temperature change.
Yuhang Zhang, Huan Yu, Isabelle De Smedt, Jintai Lin, Nicolas Theys, Michel Van Roozendael, Gaia Pinardi, Steven Compernolle, Ruijing Ni, Fangxuan Ren, Sijie Wang, Lulu Chen, Jos Van Geffen, Mengyao Liu, Alexander M. Cede, Martin Tiefengraber, Alexis Merlaud, Martina M. Friedrich, Andreas Richter, Ankie Piters, Vinod Kumar, Vinayak Sinha, Thomas Wagner, Yongjoo Choi, Hisahiro Takashima, Yugo Kanaya, Hitoshi Irie, Robert Spurr, Wenfu Sun, and Lorenzo Fabris
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 18, 1561–1589, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-1561-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-1561-2025, 2025
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We developed an advanced algorithm for global retrieval of TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) HCHO and NO2 vertical column densities with much improved consistency. Sensitivity tests demonstrate the complexity and nonlinear interactions of auxiliary parameters in the air mass factor calculation. An improved agreement is found with measurements from a global ground-based instrument network. The scientific retrieval provides a useful source of information for studies combining HCHO and NO2.
Astrid Kerkweg, Timo Kirfel, Duong H. Do, Sabine Griessbach, Patrick Jöckel, and Domenico Taraborrelli
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 1265–1286, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1265-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1265-2025, 2025
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Normally, the Modular Earth Submodel System (MESSy) is linked to complete dynamic models to create chemical climate models. However, the modular concept of MESSy and the newly developed DWARF component presented here make it possible to create simplified models that contain only one or a few process descriptions. This is very useful for technical optimisation, such as porting to GPUs, and can be used to create less complex models, such as a chemical box model.
Axel Lauer, Lisa Bock, Birgit Hassler, Patrick Jöckel, Lukas Ruhe, and Manuel Schlund
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 1169–1188, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1169-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1169-2025, 2025
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Earth system models are important tools to improve our understanding of current climate and to project climate change. Thus, it is crucial to understand possible shortcomings in the models. New features of the ESMValTool software package allow one to compare and visualize a model's performance with respect to reproducing observations in the context of other climate models in an easy and user-friendly way. We aim to help model developers assess and monitor climate simulations more efficiently.
Kerstin Hartung, Bastian Kern, Nils-Arne Dreier, Jörn Geisbüsch, Mahnoosh Haghighatnasab, Patrick Jöckel, Astrid Kerkweg, Wilton Jaciel Loch, Florian Prill, and Daniel Rieger
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 1001–1015, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1001-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-1001-2025, 2025
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The ICOsahedral Non-hydrostatic (ICON) model system Community Interface (ComIn) library supports connecting third-party modules to the ICON model. Third-party modules can range from simple diagnostic Python scripts to full chemistry models. ComIn offers a low barrier for code extensions to ICON, provides multi-language support (Fortran, C/C++, and Python), and reduces the migration effort in response to new ICON releases. This paper presents the ComIn design principles and a range of use cases.
Jan-Lukas Tirpitz, Santo Fedele Colosimo, Nathaniel Brockway, Robert Spurr, Matt Christi, Samuel Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Johnathan Hair, Taylor Shingler, Rodney Weber, Jack Dibb, Richard Moore, Elizabeth Wiggins, Vijay Natraj, Nicolas Theys, and Jochen Stutz
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1989–2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1989-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1989-2025, 2025
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We combine plume composition data from the 2019 NASA FIREX-AQ campaign with state-of-the-art radiative transfer modeling techniques to calculate distributions of actinic flux and photolysis frequencies in a wildfire plume. Excellent agreement of the model and observations demonstrates the applicability of this approach to constrain photochemistry in such plumes. We identify limiting factors for the modeling accuracy and discuss spatial and spectral features of the distributions.
Hossein Maazallahi, Foteini Stavropoulou, Samuel Jonson Sutanto, Michael Steiner, Dominik Brunner, Mariano Mertens, Patrick Jöckel, Antoon Visschedijk, Hugo Denier van der Gon, Stijn Dellaert, Nataly Velandia Salinas, Stefan Schwietzke, Daniel Zavala-Araiza, Sorin Ghemulet, Alexandru Pana, Magdalena Ardelean, Marius Corbu, Andreea Calcan, Stephen A. Conley, Mackenzie L. Smith, and Thomas Röckmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1497–1511, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1497-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1497-2025, 2025
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This article presents insights from airborne in situ measurements collected during the ROmanian Methane Emissions from Oil and gas (ROMEO) campaign supported by two models. Results reveal Romania's oil and gas methane emissions were significantly under-reported to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2019. A large underestimation was also found in the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) v7.0 for the study domain in the same year.
Yutao Chen, Ronald J. van der A, Jieying Ding, Henk Eskes, Jason E. Williams, Nicolas Theys, Athanasios Tsikerdekis, and Pieternel F. Levelt
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1851–1868, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1851-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1851-2025, 2025
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There is a lack of local SO2 top-down emission inventories in India. With the improvement in the divergence method and the derivation of SO2 local lifetime, gridded SO2 emissions over a large area can be estimated efficiently. This method can be applied to any region in the world to derive SO2 emissions. Especially for regions with high latitudes, our methodology has the potential to significantly improve the top-down derivation of SO2 emissions.
Pascal Hedelt, Jens Reichardt, Felix Lauermann, Benjamin Weiß, Nicolas Theys, Alberto Redondas, Africa Barreto, Omaira Garcia, and Diego Loyola
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1253–1272, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1253-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1253-2025, 2025
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The 2021 volcanic eruption of Tajogaite on La Palma is investigated using ground-based and satellite measurements. In addition, the atmospheric transport of the volcanic cloud towards Europe is studied in detail. The amount of SO2 released during the eruption and the height of the volcanic plume are in excellent agreement among the different measurements. Furthermore, volcanic aerosol microphysical properties could be retrieved using a new retrieval approach based on lidar measurements.
Xiaodan Ma, Jianping Huang, Michaela I. Hegglin, Patrick Jöckel, and Tianliang Zhao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 943–958, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-943-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-943-2025, 2025
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Our research explored changes in ozone levels in the northwest Pacific region over 30 years, revealing a significant increase in the middle-to-upper troposphere, especially during spring and summer. This rise is influenced by both stratospheric and tropospheric sources, which affect climate and air quality in East Asia. This work underscores the need for continued study to understand underlying mechanisms.
Markus Kilian, Volker Grewe, Patrick Jöckel, Astrid Kerkweg, Mariano Mertens, Andreas Zahn, and Helmut Ziereis
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13503–13523, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13503-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13503-2024, 2024
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Anthropogenic emissions are a major source of precursors of tropospheric ozone. As ozone formation is highly non-linear, we apply a global–regional chemistry–climate model with a source attribution method (tagging) to quantify the contribution of anthropogenic emissions to ozone. Our analysis shows that the contribution of European anthropogenic emissions largely increases during large ozone periods, indicating that emissions from these sectors drive ozone values.
Mariano Mertens, Sabine Brinkop, Phoebe Graf, Volker Grewe, Johannes Hendricks, Patrick Jöckel, Anna Lanteri, Sigrun Matthes, Vanessa S. Rieger, Mattia Righi, and Robin N. Thor
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 12079–12106, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12079-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-12079-2024, 2024
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We quantified the contributions of land transport, shipping, and aviation emissions to tropospheric ozone; its radiative forcing; and the reductions of the methane lifetime using chemistry-climate model simulations. The contributions were analysed for the conditions of 2015 and for three projections for the year 2050. The results highlight the challenges of mitigating ozone formed by emissions of the transport sector, caused by the non-linearitiy of the ozone chemistry and the long lifetime.
Sergio Soler, Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez, Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Patrick Jöckel, Torsten Neubert, Olivier Chanrion, Victor Reglero, and Nikolai Østgaard
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10225–10243, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10225-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10225-2024, 2024
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Sudden local ozone (O3) enhancements have been reported in different regions of the world since the 1970s. While the hot channel of lightning strokes directly produce significant amounts of nitrogen oxide, no direct emission of O3 is expected. Corona discharges in convective active regions could explain local O3 increases, which remains unexplained. We present the first mathematical functions that relate the global annual frequency of in-cloud coronas with four sets of meteorological variables.
Matthias Nützel, Laura Stecher, Patrick Jöckel, Franziska Winterstein, Martin Dameris, Michael Ponater, Phoebe Graf, and Markus Kunze
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 5821–5849, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-5821-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-5821-2024, 2024
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We extended the infrastructure of our modelling system to enable the use of an additional radiation scheme. After calibrating the model setups to the old and the new radiation scheme, we find that the simulation with the new scheme shows considerable improvements, e.g. concerning the cold-point temperature and stratospheric water vapour. Furthermore, perturbations of radiative fluxes associated with greenhouse gas changes, e.g. of methane, tend to be improved when the new scheme is employed.
Anna Martin, Veronika Gayler, Benedikt Steil, Klaus Klingmüller, Patrick Jöckel, Holger Tost, Jos Lelieveld, and Andrea Pozzer
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 5705–5732, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-5705-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-5705-2024, 2024
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The study evaluates the land surface and vegetation model JSBACHv4 as a replacement for the simplified submodel SURFACE in EMAC. JSBACH mitigates earlier problems of soil dryness, which are critical for vegetation modelling. When analysed using different datasets, the coupled model shows strong correlations of key variables, such as land surface temperature, surface albedo and radiation flux. The versatility of the model increases significantly, while the overall performance does not degrade.
Jean-Paul Vernier, Thomas J. Aubry, Claudia Timmreck, Anja Schmidt, Lieven Clarisse, Fred Prata, Nicolas Theys, Andrew T. Prata, Graham Mann, Hyundeok Choi, Simon Carn, Richard Rigby, Susan C. Loughlin, and John A. Stevenson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 5765–5782, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5765-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5765-2024, 2024
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The 2019 Raikoke eruption (Kamchatka, Russia) generated one of the largest emissions of particles and gases into the stratosphere since the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption. The Volcano Response (VolRes) initiative, an international effort, provided a platform for the community to share information about this eruption and assess its climate impact. The eruption led to a minor global surface cooling of 0.02 °C in 2020 which is negligible relative to warming induced by human greenhouse gas emissions.
Bruno Franco, Lieven Clarisse, Nicolas Theys, Juliette Hadji-Lazaro, Cathy Clerbaux, and Pierre Coheur
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 4973–5007, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4973-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4973-2024, 2024
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Using IASI global infrared measurements, we retrieve nitrous acid (HONO) in fire plumes from space. We detect large enhancements of pyrogenic HONO worldwide, especially from intense wildfires at Northern Hemisphere mid- and high latitudes. Predominance of IASI nighttime over daytime measurements sheds light on HONO's extended lifetime and secondary formation during long-range transport in smoke plumes. Our findings deepen the understanding of atmospheric HONO, crucial for air quality assessment.
Simon Rosanka, Holger Tost, Rolf Sander, Patrick Jöckel, Astrid Kerkweg, and Domenico Taraborrelli
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 2597–2615, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-2597-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-2597-2024, 2024
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The capabilities of the Modular Earth Submodel System (MESSy) are extended to account for non-equilibrium aqueous-phase chemistry in the representation of deliquescent aerosols. When applying the new development in a global simulation, we find that MESSy's bias in modelling routinely observed reduced inorganic aerosol mass concentrations, especially in the United States. Furthermore, the representation of fine-aerosol pH is particularly improved in the marine boundary layer.
Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez, Alejandro Malagón-Romero, and Patrick Jöckel
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 3577–3592, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3577-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-3577-2024, 2024
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Sprites are electrical discharges that occur in the upper atmosphere. Recent modelling and observational data suggest that they may have a measurable impact on atmospheric chemistry. We incorporate both the occurrence rate of sprites and their production of chemical species into a chemistry–climate model. While our results indicate that sprites have a minimal global influence on atmospheric chemistry, they underscore their noteworthy importance at a regional scale.
Ryan S. Williams, Michaela I. Hegglin, Patrick Jöckel, Hella Garny, and Keith P. Shine
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 1389–1413, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1389-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1389-2024, 2024
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During winter, a brief but abrupt reversal of the mean stratospheric westerly flow (~30 km high) around the Arctic occurs ~6 times a decade. Using a chemistry–climate model, about half of these events are shown to induce large anomalies in Arctic ozone (>25 %) and water vapour (>±25 %) around ~8–12 km altitude for up to 2–3 months, important for weather forecasting. We also calculate a doubling to trebling of the risk in breaches of mid-latitude surface air quality (ozone) standards (~60 ppbv).
Vitali E. Fioletov, Chris A. McLinden, Debora Griffin, Nickolay A. Krotkov, Can Li, Joanna Joiner, Nicolas Theys, and Simon Carn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5575–5592, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5575-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5575-2023, 2023
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Snow-covered terrain, with its high reflectance in the UV, typically enhances satellite sensitivity to boundary layer pollution. However, a significant fraction of high-quality cloud-free measurements over snow is currently excluded from analyses. In this study, we investigated how satellite SO2 measurements over snow-covered surfaces can be used to improve estimations of annual SO2 emissions.
Roland Eichinger, Sebastian Rhode, Hella Garny, Peter Preusse, Petr Pisoft, Aleš Kuchař, Patrick Jöckel, Astrid Kerkweg, and Bastian Kern
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 5561–5583, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-5561-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-5561-2023, 2023
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The columnar approach of gravity wave (GW) schemes results in dynamical model biases, but parallel decomposition makes horizontal GW propagation computationally unfeasible. In the global model EMAC, we approximate it by GW redistribution at one altitude using tailor-made redistribution maps generated with a ray tracer. More spread-out GW drag helps reconcile the model with observations and close the 60°S GW gap. Polar vortex dynamics are improved, enhancing climate model credibility.
Marina Friedel, Gabriel Chiodo, Timofei Sukhodolov, James Keeble, Thomas Peter, Svenja Seeber, Andrea Stenke, Hideharu Akiyoshi, Eugene Rozanov, David Plummer, Patrick Jöckel, Guang Zeng, Olaf Morgenstern, and Béatrice Josse
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 10235–10254, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-10235-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-10235-2023, 2023
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Previously, it has been suggested that springtime Arctic ozone depletion might worsen in the coming decades due to climate change, which might counteract the effect of reduced ozone-depleting substances. Here, we show with different chemistry–climate models that springtime Arctic ozone depletion will likely decrease in the future. Further, we explain why models show a large spread in the projected development of Arctic ozone depletion and use the model spread to constrain future projections.
Thomas Wagner, Simon Warnach, Steffen Beirle, Nicole Bobrowski, Adrian Jost, Janis Puķīte, and Nicolas Theys
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1609–1662, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1609-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1609-2023, 2023
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We investigate 3D effects of volcanic plumes on the retrieval results of satellite and ground-based UV–Vis observations. With its small ground pixels of 3.5 x 5.5 km², the TROPOMI instrument can detect much smaller volcanic plumes than previous instruments. At the same time, 3D effects become important. The effect of horizontal photon paths especially can lead to a strong underestimation of the derived plume contents of up to > 50 %, which can be further increased for strong absorbers like SO2.
Robin N. Thor, Mariano Mertens, Sigrun Matthes, Mattia Righi, Johannes Hendricks, Sabine Brinkop, Phoebe Graf, Volker Grewe, Patrick Jöckel, and Steven Smith
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 1459–1466, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-1459-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-1459-2023, 2023
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We report on an inconsistency in the latitudinal distribution of aviation emissions between two versions of a data product which is widely used by researchers. From the available documentation, we do not expect such an inconsistency. We run a chemistry–climate model to compute the effect of the inconsistency in emissions on atmospheric chemistry and radiation and find that the radiative forcing associated with aviation ozone is 7.6 % higher when using the less recent version of the data.
Dominik Brunner, Gerrit Kuhlmann, Stephan Henne, Erik Koene, Bastian Kern, Sebastian Wolff, Christiane Voigt, Patrick Jöckel, Christoph Kiemle, Anke Roiger, Alina Fiehn, Sven Krautwurst, Konstantin Gerilowski, Heinrich Bovensmann, Jakob Borchardt, Michal Galkowski, Christoph Gerbig, Julia Marshall, Andrzej Klonecki, Pascal Prunet, Robert Hanfland, Margit Pattantyús-Ábrahám, Andrzej Wyszogrodzki, and Andreas Fix
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 2699–2728, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-2699-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-2699-2023, 2023
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We evaluated six atmospheric transport models for their capability to simulate the CO2 plumes from two of the largest power plants in Europe by comparing the models against aircraft observations collected during the CoMet (Carbon Dioxide and Methane Mission) campaign in 2018. The study analyzed how realistically such plumes can be simulated at different model resolutions and how well the planned European satellite mission CO2M will be able to quantify emissions from power plants.
Manuel Schlund, Birgit Hassler, Axel Lauer, Bouwe Andela, Patrick Jöckel, Rémi Kazeroni, Saskia Loosveldt Tomas, Brian Medeiros, Valeriu Predoi, Stéphane Sénési, Jérôme Servonnat, Tobias Stacke, Javier Vegas-Regidor, Klaus Zimmermann, and Veronika Eyring
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 315–333, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-315-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-315-2023, 2023
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The Earth System Model Evaluation Tool (ESMValTool) is a community diagnostics and performance metrics tool for routine evaluation of Earth system models. Originally, ESMValTool was designed to process reformatted output provided by large model intercomparison projects like the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP). Here, we describe a new extension of ESMValTool that allows for reading and processing native climate model output, i.e., data that have not been reformatted before.
Vitali E. Fioletov, Chris A. McLinden, Debora Griffin, Ihab Abboud, Nickolay Krotkov, Peter J. T. Leonard, Can Li, Joanna Joiner, Nicolas Theys, and Simon Carn
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 75–93, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-75-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-75-2023, 2023
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Sulfur dioxide (SO2) measurements from three satellite instruments were used to update and extend the previously developed global catalogue of large SO2 emission sources. This version 2 of the global catalogue covers the period of 2005–2021 and includes a total of 759 continuously emitting point sources. The catalogue data show an approximate 50 % decline in global SO2 emissions between 2005 and 2021, although emissions were relatively stable during the last 3 years.
Matthias Nützel, Sabine Brinkop, Martin Dameris, Hella Garny, Patrick Jöckel, Laura L. Pan, and Mijeong Park
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 15659–15683, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15659-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-15659-2022, 2022
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During the Asian summer monsoon season, a large high-pressure system is present at levels close to the tropopause above Asia. We analyse how air masses are transported from surface levels to this high-pressure system, which shows distinct features from the surrounding air masses. To this end, we employ multiannual data from two complementary models that allow us to analyse the climatology as well as the interannual and intraseasonal variability of these transport pathways.
Jin Maruhashi, Volker Grewe, Christine Frömming, Patrick Jöckel, and Irene C. Dedoussi
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 14253–14282, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14253-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14253-2022, 2022
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Aviation NOx emissions lead to the formation of ozone in the atmosphere in the short term, which has a climate warming effect. This study uses global-scale simulations to characterize the transport patterns between NOx emissions at an altitude of ~ 10.4 km and the resulting ozone. Results show a strong spatial and temporal dependence of NOx in disturbing atmospheric O3 concentrations, with the location that is most impacted in terms of warming not necessarily coinciding with the emission region.
Johannes Pletzer, Didier Hauglustaine, Yann Cohen, Patrick Jöckel, and Volker Grewe
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 14323–14354, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14323-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14323-2022, 2022
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Very fast aircraft can travel long distances in extremely short times and can fly at high altitudes (15 to 35 km). These aircraft emit water vapour, nitrogen oxides, and hydrogen. Water vapour emissions remain for months to several years at these altitudes and have an important impact on temperature. We investigate two aircraft fleets flying at 26 and 35 km. Ozone is depleted more, and the water vapour perturbation and temperature change are larger for the aircraft flying at 35 km.
Miriam Latsch, Andreas Richter, Henk Eskes, Maarten Sneep, Ping Wang, Pepijn Veefkind, Ronny Lutz, Diego Loyola, Athina Argyrouli, Pieter Valks, Thomas Wagner, Holger Sihler, Michel van Roozendael, Nicolas Theys, Huan Yu, Richard Siddans, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6257–6283, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6257-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6257-2022, 2022
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The article investigates different S5P TROPOMI cloud retrieval algorithms for tropospheric trace gas retrievals. The cloud products show differences primarily over snow and ice and for scenes under sun glint. Some issues regarding across-track dependence are found for the cloud fractions as well as for the cloud heights.
Kostas Eleftheratos, John Kapsomenakis, Ilias Fountoulakis, Christos S. Zerefos, Patrick Jöckel, Martin Dameris, Alkiviadis F. Bais, Germar Bernhard, Dimitra Kouklaki, Kleareti Tourpali, Scott Stierle, J. Ben Liley, Colette Brogniez, Frédérique Auriol, Henri Diémoz, Stana Simic, Irina Petropavlovskikh, Kaisa Lakkala, and Kostas Douvis
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 12827–12855, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12827-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12827-2022, 2022
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We present the future evolution of DNA-active ultraviolet (UV) radiation in view of increasing greenhouse gases (GHGs) and decreasing ozone depleting substances (ODSs). It is shown that DNA-active UV radiation might increase after 2050 between 50° N–50° S due to GHG-induced reductions in clouds and ozone, something that is likely not to happen at high latitudes, where DNA-active UV radiation will continue its downward trend mainly due to stratospheric ozone recovery from the reduction in ODSs.
Simon F. Reifenberg, Anna Martin, Matthias Kohl, Sara Bacer, Zaneta Hamryszczak, Ivan Tadic, Lenard Röder, Daniel J. Crowley, Horst Fischer, Katharina Kaiser, Johannes Schneider, Raphael Dörich, John N. Crowley, Laura Tomsche, Andreas Marsing, Christiane Voigt, Andreas Zahn, Christopher Pöhlker, Bruna A. Holanda, Ovid Krüger, Ulrich Pöschl, Mira Pöhlker, Patrick Jöckel, Marcel Dorf, Ulrich Schumann, Jonathan Williams, Birger Bohn, Joachim Curtius, Hardwig Harder, Hans Schlager, Jos Lelieveld, and Andrea Pozzer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10901–10917, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10901-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10901-2022, 2022
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In this work we use a combination of observational data from an aircraft campaign and model results to investigate the effect of the European lockdown due to COVID-19 in spring 2020. Using model results, we show that the largest relative changes to the atmospheric composition caused by the reduced emissions are located in the upper troposphere around aircraft cruise altitude, while the largest absolute changes are present at the surface.
Nicolas Theys, Christophe Lerot, Hugues Brenot, Jeroen van Gent, Isabelle De Smedt, Lieven Clarisse, Mike Burton, Matthew Varnam, Catherine Hayer, Benjamin Esse, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4801–4817, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4801-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4801-2022, 2022
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Sulfur dioxide plume height after a volcanic eruption is an important piece of information for many different scientific studies and applications. Satellite UV retrievals are useful in this respect, but available algorithms have shown so far limited sensitivity to SO2 height. Here we present a new technique to improve the retrieval of SO2 plume height for SO2 columns as low as 5 DU. We demonstrate the algorithm using TROPOMI measurements and compare with other height estimates.
Pieternel F. Levelt, Deborah C. Stein Zweers, Ilse Aben, Maite Bauwens, Tobias Borsdorff, Isabelle De Smedt, Henk J. Eskes, Christophe Lerot, Diego G. Loyola, Fabian Romahn, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Nicolas Theys, Michel Van Roozendael, J. Pepijn Veefkind, and Tijl Verhoelst
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10319–10351, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10319-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10319-2022, 2022
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Using the COVID-19 lockdown periods as an example, we show how Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI trace gas data (NO2, SO2, CO, HCHO and CHOCHO) can be used to understand impacts on air quality for regions and cities around the globe. We also provide information for both experienced and inexperienced users about how we created the data using state-of-the-art algorithms, where to get the data, methods taking meteorological and seasonal variability into consideration, and insights for future studies.
Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Heidi Huntrieser, Thilo Erbertseder, Diego Loyola, Pieter Valks, Song Liu, Dale J. Allen, Kenneth E. Pickering, Eric J. Bucsela, Patrick Jöckel, Jos van Geffen, Henk Eskes, Sergio Soler, Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez, and Jeff Lapierre
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 3329–3351, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3329-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3329-2022, 2022
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Lightning, one of the major sources of nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere, contributes to the tropospheric concentration of ozone and to the oxidizing capacity of the atmosphere. In this work, we contribute to improving the estimation of lightning-produced nitrogen oxides in the Ebro Valley and the Pyrenees by using two different TROPOMI products and comparing the results.
M. Dolores Andrés Hernández, Andreas Hilboll, Helmut Ziereis, Eric Förster, Ovid O. Krüger, Katharina Kaiser, Johannes Schneider, Francesca Barnaba, Mihalis Vrekoussis, Jörg Schmidt, Heidi Huntrieser, Anne-Marlene Blechschmidt, Midhun George, Vladyslav Nenakhov, Theresa Harlass, Bruna A. Holanda, Jennifer Wolf, Lisa Eirenschmalz, Marc Krebsbach, Mira L. Pöhlker, Anna B. Kalisz Hedegaard, Linlu Mei, Klaus Pfeilsticker, Yangzhuoran Liu, Ralf Koppmann, Hans Schlager, Birger Bohn, Ulrich Schumann, Andreas Richter, Benjamin Schreiner, Daniel Sauer, Robert Baumann, Mariano Mertens, Patrick Jöckel, Markus Kilian, Greta Stratmann, Christopher Pöhlker, Monica Campanelli, Marco Pandolfi, Michael Sicard, José L. Gómez-Amo, Manuel Pujadas, Katja Bigge, Flora Kluge, Anja Schwarz, Nikos Daskalakis, David Walter, Andreas Zahn, Ulrich Pöschl, Harald Bönisch, Stephan Borrmann, Ulrich Platt, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 5877–5924, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5877-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5877-2022, 2022
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EMeRGe provides a unique set of in situ and remote sensing airborne measurements of trace gases and aerosol particles along selected flight routes in the lower troposphere over Europe. The interpretation uses also complementary collocated ground-based and satellite measurements. The collected data help to improve the current understanding of the complex spatial distribution of trace gases and aerosol particles resulting from mixing, transport, and transformation of pollution plumes over Europe.
Andrea Pozzer, Simon F. Reifenberg, Vinod Kumar, Bruno Franco, Matthias Kohl, Domenico Taraborrelli, Sergey Gromov, Sebastian Ehrhart, Patrick Jöckel, Rolf Sander, Veronica Fall, Simon Rosanka, Vlassis Karydis, Dimitris Akritidis, Tamara Emmerichs, Monica Crippa, Diego Guizzardi, Johannes W. Kaiser, Lieven Clarisse, Astrid Kiendler-Scharr, Holger Tost, and Alexandra Tsimpidi
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 2673–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2673-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2673-2022, 2022
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A newly developed setup of the chemistry general circulation model EMAC (ECHAM5/MESSy for Atmospheric Chemistry) is evaluated here. A comprehensive organic degradation mechanism is used and coupled with a volatility base model.
The results show that the model reproduces most of the tracers and aerosols satisfactorily but shows discrepancies for oxygenated organic gases. It is also shown that this model configuration can be used for further research in atmospheric chemistry.
Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón, Heidi Huntrieser, Patrick Jöckel, and Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 1545–1565, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1545-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1545-2022, 2022
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This study reports the first parameterization of long-continuing-current lightning in a climate model. Long-continuing-current lightning is proposed to be the main precursor of lightning-ignited wildfires and sprites, a type of transient luminous event taking place in the mesosphere. This parameterization can significantly contribute to improving the implementation of wildfires in climate models.
Christophe Lerot, François Hendrick, Michel Van Roozendael, Leonardo M. A. Alvarado, Andreas Richter, Isabelle De Smedt, Nicolas Theys, Jonas Vlietinck, Huan Yu, Jeroen Van Gent, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Jean-François Müller, Pieter Valks, Diego Loyola, Hitoshi Irie, Vinod Kumar, Thomas Wagner, Stefan F. Schreier, Vinayak Sinha, Ting Wang, Pucai Wang, and Christian Retscher
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7775–7807, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7775-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7775-2021, 2021
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Global measurements of glyoxal tropospheric columns from the satellite instrument TROPOMI are presented. Such measurements can contribute to the estimation of atmospheric emissions of volatile organic compounds. This new glyoxal product has been fully characterized with a comprehensive error budget, with comparison with other satellite data sets as well as with validation based on independent ground-based remote sensing glyoxal observations.
Nicolas Theys, Vitali Fioletov, Can Li, Isabelle De Smedt, Christophe Lerot, Chris McLinden, Nickolay Krotkov, Debora Griffin, Lieven Clarisse, Pascal Hedelt, Diego Loyola, Thomas Wagner, Vinod Kumar, Antje Innes, Roberto Ribas, François Hendrick, Jonas Vlietinck, Hugues Brenot, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16727–16744, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16727-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16727-2021, 2021
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We present a new algorithm to retrieve sulfur dioxide from space UV measurements. We apply the technique to high-resolution TROPOMI measurements and demonstrate the high sensitivity of the approach to weak SO2 emissions worldwide with an unprecedented limit of detection of 8 kt yr−1. This result has broad implications for atmospheric science studies dealing with improving emission inventories and identifying and quantifying missing sources, in the context of air quality and climate.
Hugues Brenot, Nicolas Theys, Lieven Clarisse, Jeroen van Gent, Daniel R. Hurtmans, Sophie Vandenbussche, Nikolaos Papagiannopoulos, Lucia Mona, Timo Virtanen, Andreas Uppstu, Mikhail Sofiev, Luca Bugliaro, Margarita Vázquez-Navarro, Pascal Hedelt, Michelle Maree Parks, Sara Barsotti, Mauro Coltelli, William Moreland, Simona Scollo, Giuseppe Salerno, Delia Arnold-Arias, Marcus Hirtl, Tuomas Peltonen, Juhani Lahtinen, Klaus Sievers, Florian Lipok, Rolf Rüfenacht, Alexander Haefele, Maxime Hervo, Saskia Wagenaar, Wim Som de Cerff, Jos de Laat, Arnoud Apituley, Piet Stammes, Quentin Laffineur, Andy Delcloo, Robertson Lennart, Carl-Herbert Rokitansky, Arturo Vargas, Markus Kerschbaum, Christian Resch, Raimund Zopp, Matthieu Plu, Vincent-Henri Peuch, Michel Van Roozendael, and Gerhard Wotawa
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3367–3405, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-21-3367-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-21-3367-2021, 2021
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The purpose of the EUNADICS-AV (European Natural Airborne Disaster Information and Coordination System for Aviation) prototype early warning system (EWS) is to develop the combined use of harmonised data products from satellite, ground-based and in situ instruments to produce alerts of airborne hazards (volcanic, dust, smoke and radionuclide clouds), satisfying the requirement of aviation air traffic management (ATM) stakeholders (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/723986).
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Short summary
We use a state-of-the-art numerical chemistry-climate model to study the atmospheric sulfur dioxide budget. We simulate the atmospheric concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and corresponding sulfur deposition fluxes and compare the results with observational data from a satellite instrument and with ground-based in-situ measurements. For the evaluation of the simulated atmospheric lifetime of SO2, we also simulate the fate of SO2 emitted by two volcanic eruptions that happened in 2019.
We use a state-of-the-art numerical chemistry-climate model to study the atmospheric sulfur...
