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Possible effects of volcanic eruptions on stratospheric minor constituent chemistryAlthough stratosphere penetrating volcanic eruptions have been infrequent during the last half century, periods have existed in the last several hundred years when such eruptions were significantly more frequent. Several mechanisms exist for these injections to affect stratospheric minor constituent chemistry, both on the long-term average and for short-term perturbations. These mechanisms are reviewed and, because of the sensitivity of current models of stratospheric ozone to chlorine perturbations, quantitative estimates are made of chlorine injection rates. It is found that, if chlorine makes up as much as 0.5 to 1% of the gases released and if the total gases released are about the same magnitude as the fine ash, then a major stratosphere penetrating eruption could deplete the ozone column by several percent. The estimate for the Agung eruption of 1963 is just under 1% an amount not excluded by the ozone record but complicated by the peak in atmospheric nuclear explosions at about the same time.
Document ID
19790041698
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Stolarski, R. S.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Butler, D. M.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Laboratory for Planetary Atmospheres, Greenbelt, Md., United States)
Date Acquired
August 9, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1979
Subject Category
Geophysics
Accession Number
79A25711
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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