This project is a study of organic bromine chemistry in the lower arctic atmosphere, particularly in relation to tropospheric destruction of ozone. It has been observed that shortly after the arctic sunrise, surface ozone concentrations decline from a late winter maximum to near zero before recovering to moderately high summer values. There is also strong evidence which implies that the primary cause for the minimum is the photolytic production of bromine radicals from organic bromine gases, which then combine with ozone. The chemical pathways are conjectural and little is known about the origins of the organic bromine, but it is believed that a marine source is the most probable. This study addresses the former question through a field program at Resolute, N.W.T., Canada, to collect and analyze atmospheric particulate bromine and both inorganic and organic gaseous bromine, as well as other halogens (chlorine and iodine) to assess their possible contributions to tropospheric chemistry during the arctic spring. Supporting ozone and meteorological variables are measured routinely at the Barrow Observatory of the Geophysical Monitoring for Climatic Change Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The complementary effort to collect and analyze headspace gases from incubated arctic macrophyte, phytoplankton, ice algae, and other samples is included in a separately funded action.
