Observation Sites

BGC Flask network

Our contribution to the global atmospheric observation network for biogeochemically relevant atmospheric species includes 12 sites with regular sampling in 2021, some with records since 2004. Typically, at each site every week flask triplets are filled with atmospheric air. Routinely, on all flask samples measurements by gas chromatography (GC) are performed of the mixing ratio of CO₂, CO, CH₄, N₂O, H₂ and SF₆. In addition, measurements of the isotopic composition of CO₂ (¹³C/¹²C and ¹⁸O/¹⁶O), as well as O₂/N₂ and Ar/N₂are performed by mass spectrometry (MS). Since 2012 also the isotopic composition of methane (¹³C/¹²(CH₄) and D/H(CH₄)) is routinely determined. The flask sampling progamme has three main objectives (i) an independent quality control on in situ measurements at the remote stations; (ii) measurement of additional species, such as isotopic composition as well as gases that are not easy to measure continuously at remote sites; (iii) intercompare the measurement programmes of the different laboratories.

Bialystok Tall Tower (BIK)

Atmospheric research around the 300 meters tall Bialystok tower, Poland (53.23N, 23.03E; 183m a.s.l.) has started in 2003 with regular aircraft profiling. A low maintenance system for semi-continuous measurement of CO₂, O₂/N₂, CH₄, CO, N₂O and SF₆ from five tower levels (up to 300 m) and the associated flask programme were added in 2005. Footprint analysis using the Stochastic Time-Inverted Lagrangian Transport model (STILT) shows that the measurements made at the 300 m level are regionally representative, with dominant wind directions advecting air travelled across central Europe to the station. more

Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory (CVAO)

The Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory (CVAO) situated at 16° 51′ 49’’ N, 24° 52′ 02’’ W, is part of a bilateral UK-German initiative to undertake long-term ground- and ocean-based observations in the tropical North Atlantic Ocean region. There is a long-term global outlook in the provision of key atmospheric measurements representative of the wider remote marine atmosphere, which are important for understanding changes in atmospheric composition and climate. These long-term measurements help to advance understanding of climatically significant interactions between the atmosphere and ocean and provide a regional focal point and long-term data context for field campaigns. more

Amazon Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO)

This research site is located in the middle of the Amazon rainforest in northern Brazil, about 150 km north of Manaus. It is run together by scientists from Germany and Brazil. Its aim is to continuously record meteorological, chemical and biological data, such as the concentration of greenhouses gases. With the help of these data, we hope to gain insights into how the Amazon interacts with the overlying atmosphere and the soil below. Because this region is of such importance to the global climate, it is vital to get a better understanding of these complex processes. Only then will we be able to make more accurate climate predictions. more

Zotino Tall Tower Observatory (ZOTTO)

Northern Eurasia, one of the so-called ‘hot-spot’ areas, exerts particularly important climatic controls because of its potential for large carbon storage or loss in a changing environment. What will happen with the carbon stored in forests and soils, as well as in wetlands and underlying permafrost in the boreal and arctic zone of Eurasia under warming conditions? In the framework of the ISTC partner project “Biogeochemical Responses to Rapid Climate Changes in Eurasia”, as part of a global cooperative effort to provide answers to the above questions, the Zotino Tall Tower Observatory (ZOTTO) has been established in 2006. It was intended to serve the scientific community as one of the world’s major continental research platforms. It should document and help quantifying the changes in biogeochemical cycles in this important region of the globe. more