Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere
Polar ecosystems are considered to be the last pristine environments of the earth relatively uninfluenced by human activities. Antarctica in particular, compared to the Arctic is considered to be even less affected by any kind of anthropogenic influences. Once contaminants reach the Polar Regions, t...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:79a148833d2748d49d1ddc21ccc85c5c 2023-05-15T13:21:37+02:00 Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere A. Dommergue F. Sprovieri N. Pirrone R. Ebinghaus S. Brooks J. Courteaud C. P. Ferrari 2010-04-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 https://doaj.org/article/79a148833d2748d49d1ddc21ccc85c5c EN eng Copernicus Publications http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/10/3309/2010/acp-10-3309-2010.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1680-7316 https://doaj.org/toc/1680-7324 doi:10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 1680-7316 1680-7324 https://doaj.org/article/79a148833d2748d49d1ddc21ccc85c5c Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol 10, Iss 7, Pp 3309-3319 (2010) Physics QC1-999 Chemistry QD1-999 article 2010 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 2022-12-31T09:08:30Z Polar ecosystems are considered to be the last pristine environments of the earth relatively uninfluenced by human activities. Antarctica in particular, compared to the Arctic is considered to be even less affected by any kind of anthropogenic influences. Once contaminants reach the Polar Regions, their lifetime in the troposphere depends on local removal processes. Atmospheric mercury, in particular, has unique characteristics that include long-range transport to Polar Regions and the transformation to more toxic and water-soluble compounds that may potentially become bioavailable. These chemical-physical properties have placed mercury on the priority list of an increasing number of International, European and National conventions, and agreements, aimed at the protection of the ecosystems including human health (i.e. GEO, UNEP, AMAP, UN-ECE, HELCOM, OSPAR). This interest, in turn, stimulates a significant amount of research including measurements of gaseous elemental mercury reaction rate constant with atmospheric oxidants, experimental and modelling studies in order to understand the cycling of mercury in Polar Regions, and its impact to these ecosystems. Special attention in terms of contamination of Polar Regions is paid to the consequences of the springtime phenomena, referred to as "Atmospheric Mercury Depletion Events" (AMDEs), during which elemental mercury through a series of photochemically-initiated reactions involving halogens, may be converted to a reactive form that may accumulate in polar coastal, or sea ice, ecosystems. The discovery of the AMDEs, first noted in the Arctic, has also been observed at both poles and was initially considered to result in an important net input of atmospheric mercury into the polar surfaces. However, recent studies point out that complex processes take place after deposition that may result in less significant net-inputs from the atmosphere since a fraction, sometimes significant, of deposited mercury may be recycled. Therefore, the contribution of this unique ... Article in Journal/Newspaper AMAP Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic Human health Sea ice Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Antarctic Arctic The Antarctic Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10 7 3309 3319 |
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Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Physics QC1-999 Chemistry QD1-999 |
spellingShingle |
Physics QC1-999 Chemistry QD1-999 A. Dommergue F. Sprovieri N. Pirrone R. Ebinghaus S. Brooks J. Courteaud C. P. Ferrari Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
topic_facet |
Physics QC1-999 Chemistry QD1-999 |
description |
Polar ecosystems are considered to be the last pristine environments of the earth relatively uninfluenced by human activities. Antarctica in particular, compared to the Arctic is considered to be even less affected by any kind of anthropogenic influences. Once contaminants reach the Polar Regions, their lifetime in the troposphere depends on local removal processes. Atmospheric mercury, in particular, has unique characteristics that include long-range transport to Polar Regions and the transformation to more toxic and water-soluble compounds that may potentially become bioavailable. These chemical-physical properties have placed mercury on the priority list of an increasing number of International, European and National conventions, and agreements, aimed at the protection of the ecosystems including human health (i.e. GEO, UNEP, AMAP, UN-ECE, HELCOM, OSPAR). This interest, in turn, stimulates a significant amount of research including measurements of gaseous elemental mercury reaction rate constant with atmospheric oxidants, experimental and modelling studies in order to understand the cycling of mercury in Polar Regions, and its impact to these ecosystems. Special attention in terms of contamination of Polar Regions is paid to the consequences of the springtime phenomena, referred to as "Atmospheric Mercury Depletion Events" (AMDEs), during which elemental mercury through a series of photochemically-initiated reactions involving halogens, may be converted to a reactive form that may accumulate in polar coastal, or sea ice, ecosystems. The discovery of the AMDEs, first noted in the Arctic, has also been observed at both poles and was initially considered to result in an important net input of atmospheric mercury into the polar surfaces. However, recent studies point out that complex processes take place after deposition that may result in less significant net-inputs from the atmosphere since a fraction, sometimes significant, of deposited mercury may be recycled. Therefore, the contribution of this unique ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
A. Dommergue F. Sprovieri N. Pirrone R. Ebinghaus S. Brooks J. Courteaud C. P. Ferrari |
author_facet |
A. Dommergue F. Sprovieri N. Pirrone R. Ebinghaus S. Brooks J. Courteaud C. P. Ferrari |
author_sort |
A. Dommergue |
title |
Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
title_short |
Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
title_full |
Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
title_fullStr |
Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
title_full_unstemmed |
Overview of mercury measurements in the Antarctic troposphere |
title_sort |
overview of mercury measurements in the antarctic troposphere |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2010 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 https://doaj.org/article/79a148833d2748d49d1ddc21ccc85c5c |
geographic |
Antarctic Arctic The Antarctic |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Arctic The Antarctic |
genre |
AMAP Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic Human health Sea ice |
genre_facet |
AMAP Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Arctic Human health Sea ice |
op_source |
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol 10, Iss 7, Pp 3309-3319 (2010) |
op_relation |
http://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/10/3309/2010/acp-10-3309-2010.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1680-7316 https://doaj.org/toc/1680-7324 doi:10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 1680-7316 1680-7324 https://doaj.org/article/79a148833d2748d49d1ddc21ccc85c5c |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-10-3309-2010 |
container_title |
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
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10 |
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7 |
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3309 |
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3319 |
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1766360571290058752 |