Effects of the 2006 El Niño on tropospheric composition as revealed by data from the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES)

Abstract

The Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) is unique in providing multi‐year coincident tropospheric profiles of CO, O 3 and H 2 O. TES data show large differences in these gases over Indonesia and the eastern Indian Ocean in October–December 2006 relative to 2005. In 2006, O 3 was higher by 15–30 ppb (30–75%) while CO was higher by >80 ppb in October and November, and by ∼25 ppb in December. These differences were caused by high fire emissions from Indonesia in 2006 associated with the lowest rainfall since 1997, reduced convection during the moderate El Niño, and reduced photochemical loss because of lower H 2 O. The persistence of the O 3 difference into December is consistent with higher NO x emissions from lightning in 2006. TES CO and O 3 enhancements in 2006 were larger than those observed during the weak El Niño of 2004.