On the diurnal, weekly, and seasonal cycles and annual trends in atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> at Mount Zugspitze, Germany, during 1981–2016
<p>A continuous, 36-year measurement composite of atmospheric carbon dioxide (<span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span>) at three measurement locations on Mount Zugspitze, Germany, was studied. For a comprehensive site characterization of Mount Zugspi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2019-01-01
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| Series: | Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics |
| Online Access: | https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/19/999/2019/acp-19-999-2019.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>A continuous, 36-year measurement composite of atmospheric carbon dioxide
(<span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span>) at three measurement locations on Mount Zugspitze, Germany, was
studied. For a comprehensive site characterization of Mount Zugspitze,
analyses of <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> weekly periodicity and diurnal cycle were performed to
provide evidence for local sources and sinks, showing clear weekday to
weekend differences, with dominantly higher <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> levels during the daytime
on weekdays. A case study of atmospheric trace gases (CO and NO) and the
passenger numbers to the summit indicate that <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> sources close by did
not result from tourist activities but instead obviously from anthropogenic pollution
in the near vicinity. Such analysis of local effects is an indispensable
requirement for selecting representative data at orographic complex
measurement sites. The <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> trend and seasonality were then analyzed by
background data selection and decomposition of the long-term time series into
trend and seasonal components. The mean <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> annual growth rate over the
36-year period at Zugspitze is <span class="inline-formula">1.8±0.4</span> ppm yr<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>, which is in
good agreement with Mauna Loa station and global means. The peak-to-trough
amplitude of the mean <span class="inline-formula">CO<sub>2</sub></span> seasonal cycle is <span class="inline-formula">12.4±0.6</span> ppm at
Mount Zugspitze (after data selection: <span class="inline-formula">10.5±0.5</span> ppm), which is much
lower than at nearby measurement sites at Mount Wank (<span class="inline-formula">15.9±1.5</span> ppm)
and Schauinsland (<span class="inline-formula">15.9±1.0</span> ppm), but following a similar seasonal
pattern.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1680-7316 1680-7324 |