The use of QBO, ENSO, and NAO perturbations in the evaluation of GOME-2 MetOp A total ozone measurements

• Published in: Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
• Main Authors: Eleftheratos, Kostas, Zerefos, Christos, Balis, Dimitris, Koukouli, MariLiza, Kapsomenakis, John, Loyola, Diego, Valks, Pieter, Coldewey-Egbers, Melanie, Lerot, Christophe, Frith, Stacey, Haslerud, Amund, Isaksen, I.S.A., Hassinen, S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Copernicus Publications 2019
• Subjects: Atmosphärenprozessoren; North Atlantic; North Atlantic oscillation
• Online Access: https://elib.dlr.de/126577/; http://www.atmos-meas-tech.net/12/987/2019/

In this work we present evidence that quasi-cyclical perturbations in total ozone (quasi-biennial oscillation – QBO, El Niño–Southern Oscillation – ENSO, and North Atlantic Oscillation – NAO) can be used as independent proxies in evaluating Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) 2 aboard MetOp A (GOME-2A) satellite total ozone data, using ground-based (GB) measurements, other satellite data, and chemical transport model calculations. The analysis is performed in the frame of the validation strategy on longer time scales within the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) Satellite Application Facility on Atmospheric Composition Monitoring (AC SAF) project, covering the period 2007–2016. Comparison of GOME-2A total ozone with ground observations shows mean differences of about −0.7±1.4 % in the tropics (0–30∘), about +0.1±2.1 % in the mid-latitudes (30–60∘), and about +2.5±3.2 % and 0.0±4.3 % over the northern and southern high latitudes (60–80∘), respectively. In general, we find that GOME-2A total ozone data depict the QBO–ENSO–NAO natural fluctuations in concurrence with the co-located solar backscatter ultraviolet radiometer (SBUV), GOME-type Total Ozone Essential Climate Variable (GTO-ECV; composed of total ozone observations from GOME, SCIAMACHY – SCanning Imaging Absorption SpectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY, GOME-2A, and OMI – ozone monitoring instrument, combined into one homogeneous time series), and ground-based observations. Total ozone from GOME-2A is well correlated with the QBO (highest correlation in the tropics of +0.8) in agreement with SBUV, GTO-ECV, and GB data which also give the highest correlation in the tropics. The differences between deseazonalized GOME-2A and GB total ozone in the tropics are within ±1 %. These differences were tested further as to their correlations with the QBO. The differences had practically no QBO signal, providing an independent test of the stability of the long-term variability of the satellite data. ...