Abstract
Abstract. We present decadal trend estimates of surface carbon monoxide (CO) simulated using the atmospheric chemistry general circulation model ECHAM5/MESSy (EMAC; ECHAM5 and MESSy stand for fifth-generation European Centre Hamburg general circulation model and Modular Earth Submodel System, respectively) based on the emission scenarios Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 8.5 for anthropogenic activity and Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED) v3.1 for biomass burning from 2001 through 2010. The spatial distribution of the modeled surface CO is evaluated with monthly data from the Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) thermal infrared product. The global means of correlation coefficient and relative bias for the decade 2001–2010 are 0.95 and −4.29%, respectively. We also find a reasonable correlation (R = 0.78) between the trends of EMAC surface CO and full 10-year monthly records from ground-based observation (World Data Centre for Greenhouse Gases, WDCGG). Over western Europe, eastern USA, and northern Australia, the significant decreases in EMAC surface CO are estimated at −35.5 ± 5.8, −59.6 ± 9.1, and −13.7 ± 9.5 ppbv decade−1, respectively. In contrast, the surface CO increases by +8.9 ± 4.8 ppbv decade−1 over southern Asia. A high correlation (R = 0.92) between the changes in EMAC-simulated surface CO and total emission flux shows that the significant regional trends are attributed to the changes in primary and direct emissions from both anthropogenic activity and biomass burning.
Highlights
Atmospheric carbon monoxide (CO) is a key tracer in atmospheric chemistry and climate change (Novelli et al, 1992; Forster et al, 2007; Duncan and Logan, 2008; Gomez-Pelaez et al, 2013)
We present decadal trend estimates of surface carbon monoxide (CO) simulated using the atmospheric chemistry general circulation model ECHAM5/MESSy (EMAC; ECHAM5 and MESSy stand for fifth-generation European Centre Hamburg general circulation model and Modular Earth Submodel System, respectively) based on the emission scenarios Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 8.5 for anthropogenic activity and Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED) v3.1 for biomass burning from 2001 through 2010
Without proper additional information, it is difficult to avoid the systematic error in the retrieved profiles from the algorithm that is developed based on climatology (Eskes and Boersma, 2003)
Summary
Atmospheric carbon monoxide (CO) is a key tracer in atmospheric chemistry and climate change (Novelli et al, 1992; Forster et al, 2007; Duncan and Logan, 2008; Gomez-Pelaez et al, 2013). Because of this relatively short lifetime, CO is not well-mixed in the troposphere It controls the OH concentration and distribution (Levy, 1971; Thompson, 1992; Crutzen, 1974; Logan et al, 1981), which influences the oxidation of most trace gases on the earth (Khalil and Rasmussen, 1990), such as methane (CH4) and other pollutants (Lelieveld et al, 2004; Novelli et al, 1992; Thompson and Cicerone, 1986). Duncan et al (2007) and Duncan and Logan (2008) reported comprehensive results of the global/regional budget of CO and leading causes of its trends and interannual
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