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Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 1, NUMBER 6, DECEMBER 1988

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS...
GLOBAL MODELING

Item #d88dec32

"Integration of Space and In Situ Observations to Study Global Climate Change," L. Bengtsson (European Ctr. Medium Range Weather Forecasts, Shinfield Pk., Reading, Berkshire RG2 9AX, UK), J. Shukla, Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 69(10), 1130-1143, Oct. 1988.

A comprehensive analysis of global observations, similar to the approach used in atmospheric modeling and operational numerical weather prediction (NWP), should be undertaken to study global climate change. This should be based on a four-dimensional data assimilation system with a realistic physical model that would integrate space and in situ observations to produce internally consistent, homogeneous, multivariate data sets for the earth's climate system. The concept is equally applicable for producing data sets for the atmosphere, the oceans, and the biosphere to study global climate change.

Item #d88dec33

"Dynamical Component of Seasonal and Year-to-Year Changes in Antarctic and Global Ozone," K.K. Tung (Dept. Appl. Math., Univ. Wash., Seattle WA 98195), H. Yang, J. Geophys. Res., 93(D10), 12,537-12,559, Oct. 20, 1988.

The quasi-biennial signal in the year-to-year variations in column ozone is well produced by the model with low (high) ozone correlating with the westerly (easterly) phase of the tropical quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO). The underprediction of the October mean for 1985 appears to be caused by the underprediction of the seasonal decline in September in the present model without heterogeneous chemistry. Dynamics do however account for 60 to 80% of the October mean and should play a more important role in the phenomenon than merely providing a special condition for heterogeneous chemical destruction of ozone.

Item #d88dec34

"Modeling the Nutrient and Carbon Cycles of the North Atlantic--1. Circulation, Mixing Coefficients, and Heat Fluxes," R. Schlitzer (Univ. Bremen, FB-1, Postfach 330440, 2800 Bremen 33, FRG), ibid., 93(C9), 10,699-10,723, Sep. 15, 1988.

Presents an inverse model of the nutrient and carbon cycles of the North Atlantic which includes geostrophic transports, wind-driven Ekman transport, and the information contained in tracer distributions to estimate the rates of physical processes, rates of biological productivity, particle fluxes, and air-sea gas exchange rates. The model is solved by linear programming, and the model results that are related to physical processes in the ocean are presented.

Item #d88dec35

"The Budget of Biologically Active Ultraviolet Radiation in the Earth-Atmosphere System," J.E. Frederick (Dept. Geophys. Sci., Univ. Chicago, Chicago IL 60637), D. Lubin, ibid., 93(D4), 3825-3832, Apr. 20, 1988.

The objectives of this study were 1) develop a methodology to evaluate the global budget of UV-B and UV-A radiation in the Earth-atmosphere system, using satellite-based SBUV measurements in conjunction with a simple theoretical model, and 2) analyze the radiation budget for the month of July. Results show that major changes in global cloud cover or cloud optical thicknesses could alter the ultraviolet radiation received by the biosphere by an amount comparable to that predicted for long-term trends in ozone.

Item #d88dec36

"Absolute Infrared Intensities for F-113 and F-114 and an Assessment of their Greenhouse Warming Potential Relative to Other Chlorofluorocarbons," J.D. Rogers (Environ. Sci. Dept., General Motors Res. Lab., Warren MI 48090), R.D. Stephens, ibid., 93(D3), 2423-2428, Mar. 20, 1988.

Alternative CFCs to those that destroy ozone may also pose potential environmental problems, and the relative effects on the environment of one CFC versus another are important to quantify. The greenhouse warming potentials estimated for F-113 and F-114 are compared with greenhouse warming potentials for F-11, F-12, F-22, F-134a and F-142b. F-113 and F-114 are estimated to be respectively 0.8 and 1.9 times as effective in greenhouse warming as the widely used F-12.

Item #d88dec37

"Pollution and Cloud Reflectance," S. Twomey (Inst. Atmos. Phys., Univ. Arizona, Tucson AZ 85721), R. Gall, M. Leuthold, Boundary-Layer Meteor., 41, 335-348, 1987.

Discusses how pollution changes the optical properties of clouds causing them to reflect more sunlight and transmit less. An example observed is that of ship's tracks which show in satellite images as bright lines when low thin cloud layers are present. Proposes that this effect of pollutants on a large scale can affect climate as greatly as the CO₂ effect, but in the opposite direction.

Item #d88dec38

"Optical Properties of Dirty Clouds," K.Ya Kondratyev (Inst. Lake Res., Sevastyanov St., 9, 196199, Leningrad, USSR), V.I. Binenko, ibid., 349-354.

The impact of anthropogenic aerosols and condensation nuclei is shown using different size distributions of cloud particles and changes in their optical properties. The brightness of cloud fields and ships' tracks was studied to establish, on a small scale, an effect of comparable impact to the CO₂ effect but oppositely directed. Nuclei concentrations in the atmosphere are spatially and temporally very variable, making observations of global secular trends difficult. Suggests possible mesoscale transformations of atmospheric albedo over the sea and similar effects over land in stratiform cloud layers.