Is there change over time in the season-of-birth effect for schizophrenia?: Data from the Southern hemisphere

Abstract

Data from the draft COSPAR reference model for stratospheric nitric acid (HNO3) are analysed. Eight months of LIMS HNO3 measurements allow the analysis of dynamics of regimes associated with the annual HNO3 maximum followed by the HNO3 decrease in the Northern Hemisphere and the annual HNO3 minimum followed by the HNO3 increase in the Southern Hemisphere. The HNO3 minimum is noted earlier (in November) in the Southern Hemisphere subtropical upper stratosphere, from where the regime of minimum HNO3 values propagates to the southern high-latitude middle stratosphere, and then (in Austral summer) the equatorward propagation of the regime is observed, with a persistent downward component. The regime of the HNO3 annual maximum in the Northern Hemisphere propagates from the Arctic lower stratosphere (in autumn) and from the tropical middle stratosphere (in late summer), so that in the mid-latitude middle stratosphere the downward propagation of the regime is observed. Evolution of areas with HNO3 increase and decrease by 1 ppbv against the January HNO3 distribution quantifies intensity of the HNO3 decrease in winter-spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the HNO3 increase in Austral summer-autumn in the Southern Hemisphere.