Ozone Production Underestimation Over the Tibetan Plateau: The Role of NO<sub>x</sub> and OVOCs Modeling Uncertainties
Abstract Chemical production and destruction are key components of the tropospheric ozone (O 3 ) budget, yet significant model spreads exist among various global models in estimating O 3 chemical budgets. Observations in the background atmospheres play a crucial role in validating and evaluating model uncertainties in O 3 chemistry. Here, we conducted comprehensive observations of the O 3 chemical budget at a remote site on the Tibetan Plateau. By comparing the observed O 3 chemical budgets with those simulated by GEOS‐Chem, a global chemical transport model, we identified a 60% underestimation in the O 3 production rate by GEOS‐Chem. Detailed budget analysis of O 3 and radicals revealed that this discrepancy primarily arose from GEOS‐Chem's inadequate representation of nitrogen oxides (NO x ), followed by oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs). Comparisons with previous studies indicate a widespread model bias in simulating O 3 precursors and their chemical budgets. These findings underscore the challenges in understanding O 3 chemistry linked to our imperfect understanding of the atmospheric fate of NO x and OVOCs.
Authors
- Eloise J. Slater
- Wanyun Xu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4787-1754)
- Weili Lin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0711-6378)
- Suzhen Chi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1837-4092)
- Limin Zeng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1009-7603)
- Dwayne Ellis Heard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0357-6238)
- Chengzhi Xing (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0265-2358)
- Shaojie Song (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6395-7422)
- Jiacheng Zhou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1092-3848)
- Lisa K. Whalley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4486-9029)
- Chunxiang Ye (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5417-2671)
- Chong Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3852-3056)
- Yingjie Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3397-0244)
- Yinghui Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6368-8568)
- Xuena Yu
- Yaru Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5443-9276)
- Haoqi Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9002-0774)
- Jian‐Shu Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1754-9529)
- Joanna E. Dyson
- Lifan Wang
- Weixiong Zhao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1700-8992)
Institutions
- University of Leeds (GB)
- Minzu University of China (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Peking University (CN)
- Nankai University (CN)
- State Ethnic Affairs Commission (CN)
- Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (CN)
- Beijing Forestry University (CN)
- Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (DE)
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (CN)
- Anhui Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres
- Published
- 2025-05-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1029/2025jd043321
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.30
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China