Annual cycle of ozone at and above the tropical tropopause: observations versus simulations with the Chemical Lagrangian Model of the Stratosphere (CLaMS)

Abstract

Multi-annual simulations with the Chemical Lagrangian Model of the Stratosphere (CLaMS) were conducted to study the seasonality of O₃ within the stratospheric part of the tropical tropopause layer (TTL), i.e. above θ=360 K potential temperature level. In agreement with satellite (HALOE) and in-situ observations (SHADOZ), CLaMS simulations show a pronounced annual cycle in O₃, at and above θ=380 K, with the highest mixing ratios in the late boreal summer. Within the model, this cycle is driven by the seasonality of both upwelling and in-mixing. The latter process occurs through enhanced horizontal transport from the extratropics into the TTL that is mainly driven by the meridional, isentropic winds. The strongest in-mixing occurs during the late boreal summer from the Northern Hemisphere in the potential temperature range between 370 and 420 K. Complementary, the strongest upwelling occurs in winter reducing O₃ to the lowest values in early spring. Both CLaMS simulations and Aura MLS O₃ observations consistently show that enhanced in-mixing in summer is mainly driven by the Asian monsoon anticyclone.