ACPD Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions ACPD 1680-7375 Copernicus GmbH Göttingen, Germany 10.5194/acpd-8-18111-2008 Sensitivity of satellite observations for freshly produced lightning NO<sub>x</sub> Beirle S. 1 Salzmann M. 2 Lawrence M. G. 1 Wagner T. 1 Max-Planck-Institut für Chemie, (Otto Hahn Institute), Mainz, Germany Princeton University, New Jersey, NJ, USA 15 10 2008 8 5 18111 18153 This is an open-access article ditributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. This article is available from http://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/8/18111/2008/acpd-8-18111-2008.html The full text article is available as a PDF file from http://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/8/18111/2008/acpd-8-18111-2008.pdf

In this study, we analyse the sensitivity of nadir viewing satellite observations in the visible range to freshly produced lightning NO<sub>x</sub>, i.e. for meteorological and (photo-) chemical conditions found in and around cumulonimbus clouds. For the first time, such a study is performed accounting for photo-chemistry, dynamics, and radiative transfer in a consistent way: A one week episode in the TOGA COARE/CEPEX region (Pacific) in December 1992 is simulated with a 3-D cloud resolving chemistry model. The simulated hydrometeor mixing ratios are fed into a Monte Carlo radiative transfer model to calculate box-Air Mass Factors (box-AMFs) for NO<sub>2</sub>. From these box-AMFs, together with model NO<sub>x</sub> profiles, slant columns of NO<sub>2</sub> (S<sup>NO<sub>2</sub></sup>), i.e. synthetic satellite measurements, are calculated and set in relation to the actual model NO<sub>x</sub> vertical column (V<sup>NO<sub>x</sub></sup>), yielding the "sensitivity" S<sup>NO<sub>2</sub></sup>/V<sup>NO<sub>x</sub></sup>. <br><br> From this study, we find a mean sensitivity of 0.46. NO<sub>x</sub> below the cloud bottom is mostly present as NO<sub>2</sub>, but shielded from the satellites' view, whereas NO<sub>x</sub> at the cloud top or above is shifted to NO due to high photolysis and low temperature, and hence not detectable from space. But a significant fraction of the lightning produced NO<sub>x</sub> in the middle part of the cloud is present as NO<sub>2</sub> and has a good visibility from space. Due to the resulting total sensitivity being quite high, nadir viewing satellites provide a valuable additional platform to quantify NO<sub>x</sub> production by lightning; strong lightning events over "clean" regions should be clearly detectable in satellite observations. Since the observed enhancement of NO<sub>2</sub> column densities over mesoscale convective systems are lower than expected for current estimates of NO<sub>x</sub> production per flash, satellite measurements can in particular constrain the upper bound of lightning NO<sub>x</sub> production estimates.

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