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36 Cl in modern atmospheric precipitation
Author(s) -
Scheffel C.,
Blinov A.,
Massonet S.,
Sachsenhauser H.,
StanSion C.,
Beer J.,
Synal H. A.,
Kubik P. W.,
Kaba M.,
Nolte E.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/1999gl900249
Subject(s) - atmospheric sciences , troposphere , precipitation , environmental science , northern hemisphere , southern hemisphere , atmospheric chemistry , accelerator mass spectrometry , biosphere , latitude , atmosphere (unit) , ozone , climatology , mass spectrometry , meteorology , geology , chemistry , physics , chromatography , geodesy , astronomy
The 36 Cl/Cl ratios of annual precipitation samples, collected at 28 meteorological stations over the globe were measured with accelerator mass spectrometry. Local 36 Cl fallout rates were obtained from the experimental data and compared with theoretical fluxes deduced from atmospheric cosmogenic production and an atmospheric transport model. Most of the measured fluxes were found to be larger than the predicted cosmogenic ones, up to about one order of magnitude. The deviations are largest in the northern hemisphere and for low latitudes. Recycling of 36 Cl from nuclear weapon tests from the biosphere into the troposphere as CH 3 Cl is proposed as a possible source of the observed difference and can explain the measurements as simulation calculations showed.