Stratospheric Aerosols After Pinatubo: Results from the 1991/2 Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Expedition (AASE II)

The Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Expedition II involved measurements of key quantities concerning the chemistry and physics of the stratospheric ozone loss from the NASA operated DC-8 and ER-2 platforms. The series of AASE II flights was conducted between August 22, 1991, until March 26, 1992, from Moffett Field (California), Fairbanks (Alaska), and Bangor (Maine). The timing and location of the AASE II flights permitted to obtain a large data basis pertaining to the effects of the Mt. Pinatubo volcanic plume spreading in the northern hemispheric stratosphere. This contribution presents results obtained from the ER-2 in-situ measurements up to altitudes of ≈ 20 km in the polar stratosphere with respect to: (1) the aerosol microphysics, (2) the stratospheric dynamics, and (3) the heterogeneous chemistry.