Abstract
THE persistence and pervasion of the stratospheric sulphate (Junge) layer1,2 during periods of low volcanic activities have puzzled many aeronomers. Junge3 suggested that sulphur dioxide, SO2, is probably the gaseous precursor for the sulphate layer. The origin of stratospheric SO2 is, however, uncertain. The gas may originate from the troposphere through upward diffusion processes3, while Crutzen4 recently suggested that the presence of SO2 in the stratosphere may be attributed to photolysis of carbonyl sulphide, COS. Recent measurements5 showed that the mixing ratio of SO2 remains remarkably constant in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere region. We show here that such peculiar phenomena may be explained by oxidation of COS and carbon disulphide, CS2. The gas, CS2 has been detected by Lovelock6 in seawater samples, and by Sandalls and Penkett7 in the lower troposphere. We8 recently argued that CS2 may be a precursor for atmospheric COS. Here we investigate the possible role of COS and CS2 in the stratospheric sulphur budget and account for the source for stratospheric sulphate, the observed distributions of SO2 and COS.
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SZE, N., Ko, M. CS2 and COS in the stratospheric sulphur budget. Nature 280, 308–310 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1038/280308a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/280308a0
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