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Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 5, 12103-12117, 2005
www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/5/12103/2005/ doi:10.5194/acpd-5-12103-2005 © Author(s) 2005. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. |
Large decadal scale changes of polar ozone suggest solar influence
1Institute of Environmental Physics, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
2Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Research Unit Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
3Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
4NOAA Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado, USA
Abstract. Long-term measurements of Arctic ozone show an unexpectedly large decadal scale variability in the mid-stratosphere during winter. Negative ozone anomalies are strongly correlated with the flux of energetic electrons in the radiation belt, which is modulated by the 11-year solar cycle. The magnitude of the observed decadal ozone changes (≈20%) is much larger than any previously reported solar cycle effect in the atmosphere up to this altitude. The early-winter ozone anomalies subsequently propagate downward into the lower stratosphere and may even influence total ozone and meteorological conditions during spring. These findings suggest a previously unrecognized mechanism by which solar variability impacts on climate through changes in polar ozone.
Citation: Sinnhuber, B.-M., von der Gathen, P., Sinnhuber, M., Rex, M., König-Langlo, G., and Oltmans, S. J.: Large decadal scale changes of polar ozone suggest solar influence, Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 5, 12103-12117, doi:10.5194/acpd-5-12103-2005, 2005.