Lamination in ozone profiles in the lower stratosphere

Abstract

Abstract A survey of the distribution and scale of layers of enhanced and depleted ozone in the lower stratosphere was conducted over the altitude range 9.5–21.5 km using data recorded by balloon‐borne sondes released at various sites around the world. The results show clearly that lamination is primarily a winter‐spring phenomenon from subtropical to polar regions in both hemispheres, and seems to be linked to the presence of the polar vortex. A peak altitude of occurrence was found near 14 km. The interannual fluctuations in lamina abundance were found to be extremely large, varying at high latitudes by as much as a factor of three. Both the mean vertical thickness of the laminae and the associated rise or fall in ozone partial pressure within them vary progressively with latitude, season and altitude.