Coherence of long-term stratospheric ozone vertical distribution time series used for the study of ozone recovery at a northern mid-latitude station

Abstract

Abstract. The coherence of stratospheric ozone time series retrieved from various observational records is investigated at Haute-Provence Observatory • N, 5.71 • E). The analysis is accomplished through the intercomparison of collocated ozone measurements of Light Detection and Ranging (lidar) with Solar Backscatter UltraViolet(/2) (SBUV(/2)), Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II), Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE), Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) on Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) and Aura and Global Ozone Monitoring by Occultation of Stars (GOMOS) satellite observations as well as with in situ ozonesondes and ground-based Umkehr measurements performed at OHP. A detailed statistical study of the relative differences of ozone observations over the whole stratosphere is performed to detect any specific drift in the data. On average, all instruments show their best agreement with lidar at 20-40 km, where deviations are within ±5 %. Discrepancies are somewhat higher below 20 and above 40 km. The agreement with SAGE II data is remarkable since average differences are within ±1 % at 17-41 km. In contrast, Umkehr data underestimate systematically the lidar measurements in the whole stratosphere with a near zero bias at 16-8 hPa (∼30 km). Drifts are estimated using simple linear regression for the data sets analysed in this study, from the monthly averaged difference time series. The derived values are less than ±0.5 % yr −1 in the 20-40 km altitude range and most drifts are not significant at the 2σ level. We also discuss the possibilities of extending the SAGE II and HALOE data with the GOMOS and Aura MLS data in Correspondence to: P. J. Nair (gopalapi@aero.jussieu.fr) consideration with relative offsets and drifts since the combination of such data sets are likely to be used for the study of stratospheric ozone recovery in the future.

Past changes in the vertical distribution of ozone – Part 1: Measurement techniques, uncertainties and availability

“…The latest version of the ozone profile algorithm for processing of Dobson Umkehr data (UMK04) is described in Petropavlovskikh et al (2005). Although Umkehr profiles show systematic biases in comparisons with other measurements (Nair et al, 2011;Kramarova et al, 2013b), this is of less concern for trend analysis when the UMK04 profile retrievals are used as monthly mean anomalies. However, smoothing errors, especially in the lower stratosphere, create low vertical resolution in the Umkehr retrieved profile and enhance retrieval noise in the lower stratosphere and troposphere.…”

Retrieving vertical ozone profiles from measurements of global spectral irradiance

“…They found that zenith-sky Umkehr data from an automated Dobson spectrophotometer systematically underestimate the stratospheric ozone concentration with a near-zero bias at about 30 km, but increase to 7 % at 21 and 34 km, and to 14 % at 40 km (Fig. 8 of Nair et al, 2011). Despite these large biases, Nair et al (2011) concluded that Umkehr data are useful for studies of long-term ozone evolution and for detecting drifts in satellite observations.…”

“…9 of McElroy and Kerr, 1995). Nair et al (2011) compared stratospheric ozone vertical distribution measured by a large number of ground-based and satellite sensors at the Haute-Provence Observatory, France. They found that zenith-sky Umkehr data from an automated Dobson spectrophotometer systematically underestimate the stratospheric ozone concentration with a near-zero bias at about 30 km, but increase to 7 % at 21 and 34 km, and to 14 % at 40 km (Fig.…”

“…For midlatitude sites, Brewer Umkehr data have a precision of about 15 % in the 20 to 40 km region, with larger departures outside this altitude range (McElroy and Kerr, 1995). Umkehr data are routinely used for monitoring the drift of sensors measuring the vertical distribution of ozone from space (Newchurch et al, 1987;DeLuisi et al, 1994;Miller et al, 1997;Krzyścin et al, 2009;Petropavlovskikh et al, 2005.…”

Comparison of ozone profiles from DIAL, MLS, and chemical transport model simulations over Río Gallegos, Argentina, during the spring Antarctic vortex breakup, 2009

“…However, its drift, i.e., the long-term measurement stability, should be quantitatively assessed with independent instruments. Ground-based ozone lidar is a potential candidate for such purposes and can be used to estimate drift (e.g., Nair et al, 2011Nair et al, , 2012Eckert et al, 2014;Hubert et al, 2016). Hubert et al (2016) comprehensively evaluated the bias and drift of 14 limb-viewing satellite sensors using ozonesonde and ozone lidar measurements.…”