Atmospheric ¹⁴CO observations and their use for estimating carbon monoxide removal rates

¹⁴CO is produced throughout the Earth's atmosphere by a ¹⁴N neutron capture reaction followed by hot atom oxidation. It subsequently follows the pathway of any other CO molecule and is thus removed from the atmosphere by OH oxidation. We used the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory two-dimensional chemistry/transport model to predict ¹⁴CO temporal and spatial distributions, keeping in mind the importance of reasonable simulations for validating the accuracy of atmospheric models in general. The measured ¹⁴CO latitudinal gradient in the NH is consistent with results from previous campaigns in the southern hemisphere, which reveal lower values than predicted; vertical gradients within the troposphere are similarly exaggerated in model simulations. -Authors