AirCore observations at Northern Tibetan Plateau during the Asian summer monsoon

These novel measurements shed light on the ASM transport behavior near the northern edge of the anticyclone. Joint analyses of these species with the temperature and wind profiles and supported by back trajectory modeling identify three distinct transport processes that dominate the vertical chemical structure in the middle troposphere, upper troposphere (UT), and the tropopause region.

The correlated changes in profile structures in the middle troposphere highlight the influence of the strong westerly jet. Elevated constituent concentrations in the UT identify the main level of convective transport at the upstream source regions. Observed higher altitude maxima for CH4 characterize the airmasses' continued ascent following convection.