Stratospheric Aerosol and Ozone Responses to the Hunga Tonga‐Hunga Ha'apai Volcanic Eruption

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Jinpeng Lu, Sijia Lou, Xin Huang, Lian Xue, Ke Ding, Tengyu Liu, Yue Ma, Wuke Wang, Aijun Ding
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2023
• Subjects: volcanic sulfate; Brewer‐Dobson circulation; heterogeneous chemistry; stratospheric ozone; polar ozone depletion; Geophysics. Cosmic physics; QC801-809; Antarc*; Antarctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL102315; https://doaj.org/article/a40c309b69a74d05b9abc21664863772

Abstract The Hunga Tonga‐Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH) eruption on 15 January 2022 was one of the most explosive volcanic events of the 21st century so far. According to satellite‐based measurements, 0.4 Tg of sulfur dioxide (SO2) was injected into the stratosphere during the eruption. By using observations and model simulations, here we investigate changes in the chemical compositions of the stratosphere 1 year after the HTHH eruption and examine the key physical and chemical processes that influence the ozone (O3) concentrations. Injected SO2 was oxidized into sulfate during the first 2 months, and transported from the tropics to the Antarctic by the Brewer‐Dobson circulation within 1 year. In mid‐to‐low latitudes, enhanced sulfate aerosol increased O3 concentrations in the middle stratosphere but declined in the lower stratosphere. In addition to the chemical processes, sulfate aerosols also reduced polar low‐stratospheric O3 concentrations through enhanced Antarctic upwelling anomalies.