Chlorine Nitrate over the Arctic from CLAES (2-12-93 - 3-16-93)

Key to understanding the chlorine chemistry in the polar stratosphere is the measurement of polar stratospheric clouds, chlorine monoxide, and the reservoir gas chlorine nitrate. Chlorine nitrate has been measured by the Cryogen Limb Array Etalon Spectrometer, CLAES. CLAES makes measurements by looking at infrared emission from cloud particles and trace gases. CLAES measurements help to show that the polar stratospheric clouds which form in the cold Arctic stratosphere have converted most of the chlorine nitrate into the radical chlorine monoxide. In 1992, UARS measurements showed conclusively that an an Arctic ozone hole is beginning to form. Educational levels: Undergraduate lower division, Undergraduate upper division, Graduate or professional