Susana B. Diaz

ULTRAVIOLET SOLAR RADIATION IN THE HIGH LATITUDES OF SOUTH AMERICA

Abstract Measurements of the UV solar irradiance are available from Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego during the spring and summer seasons of 4 consecutive years beginning in 1989. In addition, column ozone amounts derived from satellite‐based measurements exist for this location over the entire period from 1980 through 1991. Monthly mean column ozone over Ushuaia shows a general decline over the observing period, and a large day‐to‐day variability exists within a given month. Ozone amounts for the years 1980 through 1986 combined with a model of radiative transfer provide a climatological baseline against which to interpret the more recent ground‐based irradiance data. We focus on monthly mean noontime irradiances integrated over 5 nm wide spectral bands near 305 nm and 340 nm, respectively. Measurements in the 340 nm band show that cloudiness has a large influence on both the absolute monthly mean irradiances and their interannual variability. For example, during December the 340 nm band irradiance varied from approximately 50% of the clear‐sky value in 1992 to 65% in 1991. When the influence of cloudiness is removed, most of the months show irradiances in the 305 nm band that are larger than predicted from the climatological ozone amounts. The largest percentage enhancement occurred in October 1991 when the irradiance exceeded the baseline by 56%. The largest absolute irradiances occur in December, where the measurements range from 5.8% below the baseline in 1991 to 31% above in 1990.

Solar ultraviolet irradiance observed from southern Argentina: September 1990 to March 1991

The authors report on data which measures the solar ultraviolet irradiance between 300 and 310nm at Ushuaia, Argentina over the period Sept 1990 to Mar 1991. Ushuaia is 10[degrees] or more north of the Antarctic ozone hole, though it may or may not be in the fringe of the polar vortex. Over the Antarctic there has been an observed enhancement in solar ultraviolet irradiance on the surface of the Earth, though it has little relevance due to the sparse population density. In the northern hemisphere there has been observed an overall decrease in column ozone, but no recorded change in spectral irradiance, though there are several possible explanations for this observation. In the southern hemisphere the question of whether polar air masses could migrate north following the collapse of the polar vortex, and produce regions of depleted ozone, with consequent ultraviolet irradiance increase is looked at in this paper. Substantial increases in ultraviolet irradiance are observed from this observation period, but because of the limited data set it is difficult to say for sure that such an air mass migration was the origin. However, the net effect is still a substantial increase in solar ultraviolet irradiance, with possible biological consequences.

Ozone and UV Radiation over Southern South America: Climatology and Anomalies

Abstract Ozone and UV radiation were analyzed at eight stations from tropical to sub-Antarctic regions in South America. Ground UV irradiances were measured by multichannel radiometers as part of the Inter American Institute for Global Change Radiation network. The irradiance channels used for this study were centered at 305 nm (for UV-B measurements) and 340 nm (for UV-A measurements). Results were presented as daily maximum irradiances, as monthly averaged, daily integrated irradiances and as the ratio of 305 nm to 340 nm. These findings are the first to be based on a long time series of semispectral data from the southern region of South America. As expected, the UV-B channel and total column ozone varied with latitude. The pattern of the UV-A channel was more complex because of local atmospheric conditions. Total column ozone levels of <220 Dobson Units were observed at all sites. Analysis of autocorrelations showed a larger persistence of total column ozone level than irradiance. A decreasing cross-correlation coefficient between 305 and 340 nm and an increasing cross-correlation coefficient between 305 nm and ozone were observed at higher latitudes, indicating that factors such as cloud cover tend to dominate at northern sites and that ozone levels tend to dominate at southern sites. These results highlight the value of long-term monitoring of radiation with multichannel radiometers to determine climatological data and evaluate the combination of factors affecting ground UV radiation.

The relationship between solar UV irradiance and total ozone from observations over southern Argentina

Solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation at 300 and 305 nm, measured by a Biospherical Instruments high resolution scanning spectroradiometer at Ushuaia, southern Argentina (55°S, 68°W), as a part of the US National Science Foundation Network for Polar Regions, was compared with total ozone satellite measurements. A statistical relationship between UV and total ozone was derived. On the basis of this relationship, the differences in 300 and 305 nm irradiance between 1979–1983 and 1989–1993 intervals are estimated; for October, the 15% observed decline of total ozone has led to irradiance increases of 80% at 300 nm and 35% at 305 nm. During the days with “ozone hole” conditions, the 300 nm irradiance is as high as it would be at the summer solstice three months later, and is ∼4 times higher than the UV irradiance corresponding to the “normal” ozone condition for early October, as further illustrated for October 1994. Inclusion of the 340 nm cloudy-dependent predictor is discussed.

Solar irradiances over Ushuaia (54.49° S, 68.19° W) and San Diego (32.45° N, 117.11° W) geographical and seasonal variation

Abstract The study of long-term variability in UV-B irradiance in places affected by the “ozone hole” and the comparison with undisturbed places is of interest for the atmospheric community, and is also useful from the biological and epidemiological points of view. Since some ecosystems are also sensitive to other bands of the solar spectrum, the study of UV-A and visible are also of interest. In this paper, we compare the irradiance in the UV-B, UV-A and visible at Ushuaia ( 54.49° S , 68.19° W ) and San Diego ( 32.45° N , 117.11° W ), going from instantaneous to year-integrated values. As some ecosystems are sensitive not only to the absolute value, but also to the relative changes, we also analyse the ozone and irradiance relative variations. The large variability in the total ozone column at Ushuaia combined with other parameters such as solar zenith angles, cloud cover and amount of daylight hours results in a wide variety of situations. For the ozone-sensitive bands, peaks of daily and daily-integrated maximum irradiance observed at Ushuaia during spring are remarkably higher than expected, although seldom reaching the maximum observed at San Diego. For the UV-A and visible, values at Ushuaia during the late spring and summer are very close to and, in a few cases, even exceed those at San Diego. The highest monthly integrated irradiance for the band 298.507–303.030 nm, at Ushuaia, was observed in December 1990, with a value well above the mean for that month. Relative ozone variation at Ushuaia presents the most important depletion and largest dispersion during the spring, as expected. While, for the ozone-sensitive bands, the largest relative irradiance increment is observed during the winter.

Solar ultraviolet irradiance at Tierra Del Fuego: Comparison of measurements and calculations over a full annual cycle

A spectroradiometer located at Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina obtained a high quality data set on the solar ultraviolet (UV) spectral irradiance for a full annual cycle during 1992. The unique aspect of the ground-based irradiances is their ability to characterize the effects of cloudiness. Measured irradiances at 340 nm can be used to characterize the attenuation provided by cloudy skies. When irradiances at shorter wavelengths, 302.5–320.0 nm, are adjusted for this attenuation, they show good agreement with radiative transfer calculations which assume clear skies and utilize data from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) as inputs. The differences which exist are qualitatively consistent with the neglect of spherical geometry in the calculated irradiances.

Simulation of Ozone Depletion Using Ambient Irradiance Supplemented with UV Lamps

Abstract In studies of the biological effects of UV radiation, ozone depletion can be mimicked by performing the study under ambient conditions and adding radiation with UV-B lamps. We evaluated this methodology at three different locations along a latitudinal gradient: Rimouski (Canada), Ubatuba (Brazil) and Ushuaia (Argentina). Experiments of the effect of potential ozone depletion on marine ecosystems were carried out in large outdoor enclosures (mesocosms). In all locations we simulated irradiances corresponding to 60% ozone depletion, which may produce a 130–1900% increase in 305 nm irradiance at noon, depending on site and season. Supplementation with a fixed percentage of ambient irradiance provides a better simulation of irradiance increase due to ozone depletion than supplementation with a fixed irradiance value, particularly near sunrise and sunset or under cloudy skies. Calculations performed for Ushuaia showed that, on very cloudy days, supplementation by the square-wave method may produce unrealistic irradiances. Differences between the spectra of the calculated supplementing irradiance and the lamp for a given site and date will be a function of the time of day and may become more or less pronounced according to the biological weighting function of the effect under study.

Mediated Modeling of the Impacts of Enhanced UV-B Radiation on Ecosystem Services

Abstract This article describes the use of group model building to facilitate interaction with stakeholders, synthesize research results and assist in the development of hypotheses about climate change at the global level in relation to UV-B radiation and ecosystem service valuation. The objective was to provide a platform for integration of the various research components within a multidisciplinary research project as a basis for interaction with stakeholders with backgrounds in areas other than science. An integrated summary of the scientific findings, along with stakeholder input, was intended to produce a bridge between science and policymaking. We used a mediated modeling approach that was implemented as a pilot project in Ushuaia, Argentina. The investigation was divided into two participatory workshops: data gathering and model evaluation. Scientists and the local stakeholders supported the valuation of ecosystem services as a useful common denominator for integrating the various scientific results. The concept of economic impacts in aquatic and marsh systems was represented by values for ecosystem services altered by UV-B radiation. In addition, direct local socioeconomic impacts of enhanced UV-B radiation were modeled, using data from Ushuaia. We worked with 5 global latitudinal regions, focusing on net primary production and biomass for the marine system and on 3 plant species for the marsh system. Ecosystem service values were calculated for both sectors. The synthesis model reflects the conclusions from the literature and from experimental research at the global level. UV-B is not a significant stress for the marshes, relative to the potential impact of increases in the sea level. Enhanced UV-B favors microbial dynamics in marine systems that could cause a significant shift from primary producers to bacteria at the community level. In addition, synergetic effects of UV-B and certain pollutants potentiate the shift to heterotrophs. This may impact the oceanic carbon cycle by increasing the ratio of respiratory to photosynthetic organisms in surface waters and, thus, the role of the ocean as a carbon sink for atmospheric CO2. In summary, although changes in the marine sector due to anthropogenic influences may affect global climate change, marshes are expected to primarily be affected by climate change.

Multichannel radiometer calibration: a new approach.

The error in irradiance measured with Sun-calibrated multichannel radiometers may be large when the solar zenith angle (SZA) increases. This could be particularly detrimental in radiometers installed at mid and high latitudes, where SZAs at noon are larger than 50 degrees during part of the year. When a multiregressive methodology, including the total ozone column and SZA, was applied in the calculation of the calibration constant, an important improvement was observed. By combining two different equations, an improvement was obtained at almost all the SZAs in the calibration. An independent test that compared the irradiance of a multichannel instrument and a spectroradiometer installed in Ushuaia, Argentina, was used to confirm the results.

Effect on irradiance of the eruption of the Cordon Caulle (Chile) at different altitudes in the Nahuel Huapi National Park (Patagonia, Argentina)

Volcanic eruptions inject ash and non-ash particles into the atmosphere, modifying regional Aerosols Optical Depth (AOD) and aerosols size distribution, which affect irradiance at the earth’s surface. In this paper, we analyze the effect of the eruption of Puyehue-Cordon Caulle (Chile) on irradiance in the area of the Nahuel Huapi National Park (NHNP) (~100 km southeast of Puyehue-Cordon Caulle), at different altitudes. In this paper we only included the results for direct and AOD obtained during field campaigns at two consecutive years, before and after the eruption. Three days presented clear skies during most of the day in 2011. Two of those days, showed AOD similar to the values in 2010. On the third days, at the lowest altitude site (804m.s.l.), AOD were near 200% larger than in 2010. The largest decreases observed, at noon, in the direct irradiance was ~30% at 380 nm and 25% at 500nm, increasing with Solar Zenith Angle (SZA). The effect was less pronounced at the site at highest altitude (1930 m.s.l.), where the AODs increase was near 90% and the direct noon irradiance decrease 10% at 380 nm and 7% at 500nm.