Articles | Volume 12, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00585-994-0394-8
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00585-994-0394-8
30 Apr 1994
30 Apr 1994

Simulating the global transport of nitrogen oxides emissions from aircraft

R. Sausen and I. Köhler

Abstract. With the atmosphere general circulation model ECHAM the passive transport of NOx emitted from global subsonic air traffic and the NOx concentration change due to these emissions are investigated. The source of NOx is prescribed according to an aircraft emission data base. The sink of NOx is parameterized as an exponential decay process with globally constant lifetime. Simulations in perpetual January and July modes are performed. Both the resulting mean and the standard deviation of the NOx mass mixing ratio are analysed. In January horizontal dispersion is more pronounced and vertical mixing is smaller than in July. In both cases the resulting quasi-stationary fields of the mass mixing ratio display a pronounced zonal asymmetry. The variability accounts up to 30% of the mean field.