Collaborative Research: Developing and Testing Radiation-Transfer Models for Snow-Pack Photochemistry during the ALERT2000 Field Campaign

This collaborative research project with William Simpson, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, will develop and test a radiation-transfer model for snow photochemistry. The model will help quantify the extent of photochemical processing of trace compounds within snow and will help in interpreting ice core climate records and understanding atmospheric chemistry in snow-covered regions. The project includes a laboratory-based program of experiments to quantify absorption spectra and quantum yields. Experimental measurements of photolysis rates for bromoform, a possible precursor of 'active bromine' in a proposed mechanism of Arctic boundary-layer ozone depletion, and other trace compounds in snow interstitial spaces will be made in a novel snow photolysis chamber.