Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1190
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1190
04 Apr 2025
 | 04 Apr 2025

A systematic comparison of ACE-FTS δD retrievals with airborne in situ sampling

Benjamin Wade Clouser, Carly Cyd KleinStern, Adrien Desmoulin, Clare E. Singer, Jason M. St. Clair, Thomas F. Hanisco, David S. Sayres, and Elisabeth J. Moyer

Abstract. The isotopic composition of water vapor in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) can be used to understand and constrain the budget and pathways of water transport into that region of the atmosphere. Measurements of the water isotopic composition help further understanding of the region's chemistry, radiative budget, and the sublimation and growth of polar stratospheric clouds and high-altitude cirrus, both of which are also important to stratospheric chemistry and Earth's radiation budget. Here we present the first intercomparison of water isotopic composition δD using in situ measurements from the ChiWIS, Harvard ICOS, and Hoxotope instruments and satellite retrievals from ACE-FTS. The in situ data comes from the AVE-WIIF, TC4, CR-AVE, StratoClim, and ACCLIP field campaigns, and satellite retrievals of isotopic composition are derived from the ACE-FTS v5.2 data set. We find that in all campaign intervals, the satellite retrievals above about 14 km altitude are depleted by up to 150 ‰ with respect to in situ measurements. We also use in situ measurements from the ChiWIS instrument, which has flown in both the Asian Summer Monsoon (AM) and the North American Monsoon (NAM), to confirm the isotopic enhancement in δD observed in satellite retrievals above the NAM.

Competing interests: One of the co-authors is a member of the AMT editorial board.

Publisher's note: Copernicus Publications remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims made in the text, published maps, institutional affiliations, or any other geographical representation in this paper. While Copernicus Publications makes every effort to include appropriate place names, the final responsibility lies with the authors. Views expressed in the text are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.
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Benjamin Wade Clouser, Carly Cyd KleinStern, Adrien Desmoulin, Clare E. Singer, Jason M. St. Clair, Thomas F. Hanisco, David S. Sayres, and Elisabeth J. Moyer

Status: final response (author comments only)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • CC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-1190', Farahnaz Khosrawi, 23 Apr 2025
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-1190', Chris Boone, 01 May 2025
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-1190', Anonymous Referee #2, 09 Jun 2025
Benjamin Wade Clouser, Carly Cyd KleinStern, Adrien Desmoulin, Clare E. Singer, Jason M. St. Clair, Thomas F. Hanisco, David S. Sayres, and Elisabeth J. Moyer
Benjamin Wade Clouser, Carly Cyd KleinStern, Adrien Desmoulin, Clare E. Singer, Jason M. St. Clair, Thomas F. Hanisco, David S. Sayres, and Elisabeth J. Moyer

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Short summary
Water molecules comes in several varieties, of which H216O is the most common. These varieties behave differently enough under freezing to create strong changes in the ratio of heavy to light water molecules. Here we compare observations of these ratios from satellites and high-altitude airborne instruments. These observations provide information about how air reaches the upper parts of the atmosphere, so it is important to reconcile difference between different modes of observations.
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