Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Classification of Northern Hemisphere stratospheric ozone and water vapor profiles by meteorological regime

• Main Authors: M. B. Follette-cook, R. D. Hudson, G. E. Nedoluha
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Arctic
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.607.4723; http://www.atmos-chem-phys.org/9/5989/2009/acp-9-5989-2009.pdf

Abstract. The subtropical and polar upper troposphere fronts and the polar vortex serve as the boundaries to divide the Northern Hemisphere into four meteorological regimes. These regimes are defined as (1) the arctic regime – within the polar vortex, (2) the polar regime – between the polar front and the polar vortex, or when the latter is not present, the pole, (3) the midlatitude regime – between the subtrop-ical and polar fronts, and (4) the tropical regime – between the equator and the subtropical front. Data from the Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE) and the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II) were used to show that within each meteorological regime, ozone and water profiles are characterized by unique ozonepause and hygropause heights. Daily measurements and seven-year (1997–2003) monthly climatologies showed