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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 10, NUMBER 7, JULY 1997

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS...
OZONE DEPLETION: AIRCRAFT IMPACTS

Item #d97jul42

"On the Possible Role of Aircraft-Generated Soot in the Middle Latitude Ozone Depletion," S. Bekki (Dept. Chem., Univ. Cambridge, Lensfield Rd., Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK.; e-mail: slimane@atm.ch.cam.ac.uk), J. Geophys. Res., 102(D9), 10,751-10,758, May 20, 1997.

Recent 1-D models calculations suggested that heterogeneous chemistry on black carbon could play a major role in stratospheric chemistry. Here, a 2-D aerosol/soot photochemical model simulates realistically the stratospheric global distribution of black soot, and also reproduces a large part of the lower stratospheric ozone trend observed at northern middle latitudes. However, results are sensitive to the assumed ozone uptake rate on soot, which is still uncertain.

Item #d97jul43

"The Role of Sulfur Emissions in Volatile Particle Formation in Jet Aircraft Exhaust Plumes," J. Kärcher (Univ. München, Hohenbachernstr. 22, D-85354 Freising, Ger.), D.W. Fahey, Geophys. Res. Lett., 24(4), 389-392, Feb. 15, 1997.

Results of a comprehensive model are linked with observations of large numbers of nanometer-sized aerosols made in the nascent plume of a Concorde aircraft, providing strong evidence that high levels of SO3 in the plume are required to explain the particles. This suggests the need to limit SO3 emissions from aircraft exhaust to minimize impacts on stratospheric ozone and radiative forcing. (See RESEARCH NEWS, this Global Climate Change Digest issue--July 1997.)

Item #d97jul44

"Stratospheric Mean Ages and Transport Rates from Observations of Carbon Dioxide and Nitrous Oxide," K.A. Boering, S.C. Wofsy (Dept. Earth & Planet. Sci., Harvard Univ., Cambridge MA 02138), et al., Science, 274(5291), 1340-1343, Nov. 22, 1996.

Deductions made from stratospheric observations of CO₂ and N₂O show that current model simulations probably underestimate pollutant concentrations from proposed stratospheric aircraft by 25-100%.