Description: Large volumes of seawater are used in different industrial sectors such as power plants and ships. Chemical disinfection of this seawater prevents bio-fouling, but also produces halogenated disinfection by-products (DBPs). One major DBP is bromoform whose anthropogenic input to the environment is highly uncertain. Halocarbons such as bromoform impact the oxidation of trace gases and ozone chemistry in the atmosphere. We quantify the contribution of DBPs from industrial waste water to oceanic halocarbon concentrations and their impact on atmospheric chemistry. Based on industrial water discharge and DBP estimates, we simulate oceanic pathways of halocarbons along NEMO-ORCA12 driven Lagrangian trajectories. Anthropogenic halocarbon concentration are strongly enhanced along the coasts in Southeast Asia, but also allow for transport into the open ocean. We highlight bromoform showing that its anthropogenic sources can explain much of observed shelf water concentrations. We show how anthropogenic marine bromine impacts tropospheric and stratospheric ozone chemistry compared to natural background emissions.

Description: The zonal wave number 3 planetary wave with about a 2 day period is a recurrent wave feature in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT). The quasi 2 day wave (QTDW) exhibits strong seasonal variability with peak amplitudes after summer solstice. In late January and early February, satellites also discovered two strong enhancements of the QTDW in meridional wind, one peak at summer midlatitudes near 90 km and the other in the tropical lower thermosphere. For the first time, this double-peak characteristic of the QTDW meridional component is numerically investigated by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) thermosphere-ionosphere-mesosphere-electrodynamics general circulation model (TIME-GCM) with the QTDW forcing prescribed at the lower model boundary and explained by the combined effect of baroclinic-barotropic instability and Rossby normal mode. Baroclinic-barotropic instability is capable of amplifying the QTDW, manifesting as Eliassen-Palm (EP) flux divergence in the summer mesosphere. Without the direct contribution from baroclinic-barotropic instability, the simulated QTDW response in a lower thermosphere temperature and horizontal wind resembles that of the (3, 0) Rossby-gravity normal mode. In the summer middle atmosphere, the wave amplitude grows substantially, like an internal wave in the regions of large refractive index. As the wave amplitude growth ceases near the mesopause, where the zonal wind reverses direction, the QTDW reaches its maximum amplitude, displaying an enhanced meridional component in the tropical lower thermosphere. Several new aspects on the QTDWs in the MLT were also revealed. Compared with a prior model run, the propagation of the QTDW can also be prohibited by a self-generated critical layer in a strong thermospheric easterly wind. In addition, a direct contribution from the migrating diurnal tide to the QTDW amplitude in the MLT is found. This is largely attributed to the change of the background zonal wind caused by the tide, thus leading to the increase of the QTDW refractive index in the summer middle atmosphere.

Description: We report on six continuous hours of OH airglow imager observations (at z ∼ 87 km) of convectively generated gravity waves (GWs) near Fort Collins, Colorado, on the evening of 08 September 2005. These GWs appeared as nearly concentric rings, and had epicenters near the locations of deep convection in three thunderstorms in Colorado, Nebraska and South Dakota. Using GOES satellite and weather radar observations, we show that the GWs closely follow the thunderstorms. Using the background wind from a nearby radar, the intrinsic wave parameters and vertical wavelengths are calculated. The temperature perturbations are estimated to be T′/T¯ ∼ 1–3% for GWs with horizontal wavelengths λh ∼ 20–40 km and horizontal phase speeds ∼40–60 m/s. The horizontal wavelengths of GWs from a convective cluster decreased in time from 30 to 15 km. We employ convective plume and ray-trace models to simulate the GW-induced OH intensity perturbations from convective plumes, clusters and complexes. We find that the results using the background model wind (radiosonde/TIME-GCM) agree well with the late-time observations, when the images are dominated by southwestward, short-wavelength, high-frequency GWs. These late-time GWs propagate against the background wind, and have λh ∼ 30–40 km and periods of τ ∼ 20–30 min. The OH intensity perturbations are enhanced because the vertical wavelengths λz increased, T′/T¯ increased, and the vertical velocity perturbations w′ decreased (because the GWs were near their reflection levels). We also find that these short-wavelength GWs were created ∼5 h earlier by an extremely energetic, deep convective plume in South Dakota, thereby showing that small-scale, convective GWs directly link the troposphere and mesopause region.

Description: Background: Streptococcus equi ssp. zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) is an important pathogen causing swine streptococcosis in China. Pathogenicity islands (PAIs) of S. zooepidemicus have been transferred among bacteria through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and play important roles in the adaptation and increased virulence of S. zooepidemicus. The present study used comparative genomics to examine the different pathogenicities of S. zooepidemicus. Results: Genome of S. zooepidemicus ATCC35246 (Sz35246) comprises 2,167,264-bp of a single circular chromosome, with a GC content of 41.65%. Comparative genome analysis of Sz35246, S. zooepidemicus MGCS10565 (Sz10565), Streptococcus equi. ssp. equi. 4047 (Se4047) and S. zooepidemicus H70 (Sz70) identified 320 Sz35246-specific genes, clustered into three toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems PAIs and one restriction modification system (RM system) PAI. These four acquired PAIs encode proteins that may contribute to the overall pathogenic capacity and fitness of this bacterium to adapt to different hosts. Analysis of the in vivo and in vitro transcriptomes of this bacterium revealed differentially expressed PAI genes and non-PAI genes, suggesting that Sz35246 possess mechanisms for infecting animals and adapting to a wide range of host environments. Analysis of the genome identified potential Sz35246 virulence genes. Genes of the Fim III operon were presumed to be involved in breaking the host-restriction of Sz35246. Conclusion: Genome wide comparisons of Sz35246 with three other strains and transcriptome analysis revealed novel genes related to bacterial virulence and breaking the host-restriction. Four specific PAIs, which were judged to have been transferred into Sz35246 genome through HGT, were identified for the first time. Further analysis of the TA and RM systems in the PAIs will improve our understanding of the pathogenicity of this bacterium and could lead to the development of diagnostics and vaccines.

Description: [1]  Using the middle atmosphere temperature dataset observed by the Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) satellite experiment between 2002 and 2012, and temperatures simulated by the Whole Atmospheric Community Climate Model version 3.5 (WACCM3.5) between 1953 and 2005, we studied the influence of El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on middle atmosphere temperature during the Northern Hemisphere (NH) wintertime. For the first time, a significant winter temperature response to ENSO in the middle mesosphere has been observed, with an anomalous warming of ~1.0 K/MEI (Multivariate ENSO Index) in the tropics and an anomalous cooling of ~ -2.0 K/MEI in the NH middle latitudes. The observed temperature responses to ENSO in the mesosphere are opposite to those in the stratosphere, in agreement with previous modeling studies. Temperature responses to ENSO observed by SABER show similar patterns to those simulated by the WACCM3.5 model. Analysis of the WACCM3.5 residual mean meridional circulation response to ENSO reveals a significant downwelling in the tropical mesosphere and upwelling in the NH middle and high latitudes during warm ENSO events, which is mostly driven by anomalous eastward gravity wave forcing in the NH mesosphere.

Description: The quasi‐biennial oscillation (QBO) of the equatorial zonal wind leads to zonally symmetric temperature variations in the stratosphere that descend downward. Here we investigate the QBO‐induced temperature anomalies in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL) and detect pronounced longitudinal variations of the signal. In addition, the QBO temperature anomalies show a strong seasonal variability. The magnitude of these seasonal and longitudinal QBO variations is comparable to the magnitude of the well‐known zonal mean QBO signal in the TTL. At the cold point tropopause, the strongest QBO variations of around ±1.6 K are found over regions of active convection such as the West Pacific and Africa during boreal winter. The weakest QBO variations of ±0.25 K are detected over the East Pacific during boreal summer, while the zonal mean signal ranges around ±0.7 K. The longitudinal variations are associated with enhanced convective activity that occurs during QBO cold phases and locally enhances the cold anomalies.

Description: It is an open question how localized elevated emissions of bromoform (CHBr3) and other very short-lived halocarbons (VSLHs), found in coastal and upwelling regions, and low background emissions, typically found over the open ocean, impact the atmospheric VSLH distribution. In this study, we use the Lagrangian dispersion model FLEXPART to simulate atmospheric CHBr3 resulting from assumed uniform background emissions, and from elevated emissions consistent with those derived during three tropical cruise campaigns. The simulations demonstrate that the atmospheric CHBr3 distributions in the uniform background emissions scenario are highly variable with high mixing ratios appearing in regions of convergence or low wind speed. This relation holds on regional and global scales. The impact of localized elevated emissions on the atmospheric CHBr3 distribution varies significantly from campaign to campaign. The estimated impact depends on the strength of the emissions and the meteorological conditions. In the open waters of the western Pacific and Indian oceans, localized elevated emissions only slightly increase the background concentrations of atmospheric CHBr3, even when 1∘ wide source regions along the cruise tracks are assumed. Near the coast, elevated emissions, including hot spots up to 100 times larger than the uniform background emissions, can be strong enough to be distinguished from the atmospheric background. However, it is not necessarily the highest hot spot emission that produces the largest enhancement, since the tug-of-war between fast advective transport and local accumulation at the time of emission is also important. Our results demonstrate that transport variations in the atmosphere itself are sufficient to produce highly variable VSLH distributions, and elevated VSLHs in the atmosphere do not always reflect a strong localized source. Localized elevated emissions can be obliterated by the highly variable atmospheric background, even if they are orders of magnitude larger than the average open ocean emissions.

Description: Bromoform (CHBr3), a recognized contributor to stratospheric ozone depletion, has been largely exempt from the Montreal Protocol's regulation due to its short atmospheric lifetime and large natural emissions. Using our recent CHBr3 emission inventory containing both natural and anthropogenic sources, we reevaluated the role played by the latter in the total CHBr3 flux into the Northern Hemisphere extratropical stratosphere. Derived mainly from ship ballast, power plant cooling and desalination plant brine water, these anthropogenic sources suggest a substantial underestimation in previous global CHBr3 emission estimates. Anthropogenic sources have been underestimated by 31.5% globally, and more alarmingly, this underestimation escalates to 70.5% when focusing on the Northern Hemisphere. Consequently, atmospheric CHBr3 concentrations are also significantly higher than previous estimates, especially over the NH extratropics during boreal winter. The ODP-weighted emissions in the NH based on historical ECMWF meteorology are ~28.2 Gg Br/year, increased by ~78% above previous estimates, suggesting a more significant contribution of anthropogenic CHBr3 to stratospheric ozone depletion, especially in the NH lowermost stratosphere. To study the potential impact of these revised emission inventories, we employ the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM), which enables us to project the future ozone depletion from CHBr3 under climate change scenarios and evaluate the necessity for regulatory measures to manage anthropogenic sources.

Description: To mitigate the rumen enteric methane (CH4) produced by ruminant livestock, Asparagopsis taxiformis is proposed as an additive to ruminant feed. During the cultivation of Asparagopsis taxiformis in the sea or in terrestrially based systems, this macroalgae, like most seaweeds and phytoplankton, produces a large amount of bromoform (CHBr3), which contributes to ozone depletion once released into the atmosphere. In this study, we focus on the impact of CHBr3 on the stratospheric ozone layer resulting from potential emissions from proposed Asparagopsis cultivation in Australia. The impact is assessed by weighting the emissions of CHBr3 with its ozone depletion potential (ODP), which is traditionally defined for long-lived halocarbons but has also been applied to very short-lived substances (VSLSs). An annual yield of ∼3.5 × 104 Mg dry weight is required to meet the needs of 50 % of the beef feedlot and dairy cattle in Australia. Our study shows that the intensity and impact of CHBr3 emissions vary, depending on location and cultivation scenarios. Of the proposed locations, tropical farms near the Darwin region are associated with the largest CHBr3 ODP values. However, farming of Asparagopsis using either ocean or terrestrial cultivation systems at any of the proposed locations does not have the potential to significantly impact the ozone layer. Even if all Asparagopsis farming were performed in Darwin, the CHBr3 emitted into the atmosphere would amount to less than 0.02 % of the global ODP-weighted emissions. The impact of remaining farming scenarios is also relatively small even if the intended annual yield in Darwin is scaled by a factor of 30 to meet the global requirements, which will increase the global ODP-weighted emissions up to ∼0.5 %.

Description: The Indian Ocean is coupled to atmospheric dynamics and chemical composition via several unique mechanisms, such as the seasonally varying monsoon circulation. During the winter monsoon season, high pollution levels are regularly observed over the entire northern Indian Ocean, while during the summer monsoon, clean air dominates the atmospheric composition, leading to distinct chemical regimes. The changing atmospheric composition over the Indian Ocean can interact with oceanic biogeochemical cycles and impact marine ecosystems, resulting in potential climate feedbacks. Here, we review current progress in detecting and understanding atmospheric gas-phase composition over the Indian Ocean and its local and global impacts. The review considers results from recent Indian Ocean ship campaigns, satellite measurements, station data, and information on continental and oceanic trace gas emissions. The distribution of all major pollutants and greenhouse gases shows pronounced differences between the landmass source regions and the Indian Ocean, with strong gradients over the coastal areas. Surface pollution and ozone are highest during the winter monsoon over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea coastal waters due to air mass advection from the Indo-Gangetic Plain and continental outflow from Southeast Asia. We observe, however, that unusual types of wind patterns can lead to pronounced deviations of the typical trace gas distributions. For example, the ozone distribution maxima shift to different regions under wind scenarios that differ from the regular seasonal transport patterns. The distribution of greenhouse gases over the Indian Ocean shows many similarities when compared to the pollution fields, but also some differences of the latitudinal and seasonal variations resulting from their long lifetimes and biogenic sources. Mixing ratios of greenhouse gases such as methane show positive trends over the Indian Ocean, but long-term changes in pollution and ozone due to changing emissions and transport patterns require further investigation. Although we know that changing atmospheric composition and perturbations within the Indian Ocean affect each other, the impacts of atmospheric pollution on oceanic biogeochemistry and trace gas cycling are severely understudied. We highlight potential mechanisms, future research topics, and observational requirements that need to be explored in order to fully understand such interactions and feedbacks in the Indian Ocean region.