Role of Ozone Deposition in the Occurrence of the Spring Maximum

Abstract

A hypothesis has been formulated on the basis of experimental data presented in this article. According to the hypothesis, occurrence of the spring surface ozone maximum at mid-latitudes results from a delay in snow-cover melt. The data were collected at ozone stations in Minsk (Belarus) and Preila (Lithuania). Because the measurements of surface ozone concentration are quite different, despite the close proximity of the stations, a conclusion can be drawn about the significant influence of meteorological parameters on measurements. In addition to a rather subjective and poorly defined parameter—time of snow melt—the difference between the average March temperature and a climatological mean may be treated as a criterion for the presence or absence of the spring ozone maximum.