Background: Why do we care

1
Trends and Distributions of Surface Ozone
Measured at Czech GLOBE Schools Bryana
Henderson, Margaret Pippin, Jack Fishman, John
Creilson NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton,
VA, USA TEREZA Association for Environmental
Education, Prague, CZ Students and Teachers of
the Czech Republic
A 3-Day Case Study in 2003
Background Why do we care?
On August 13, 2003, many ozone exceedences were
reported in Europe. Backward trajectories were
calculated for periods during which ozone levels
were unusually high, and show that ozone levels
are higher when residence times (the amount of
time that the air lingers over central Europe)
are longer. 1, 2
Ozone is a major component of smog. Ozone is a
known eye and respiratory irritant, causing 4000
premature deaths per year in the U.S.
Jicín ozone108 ppb
August 12
(from Bell et al. J. Amer. Med. Assoc., 292, 2004)
Data Results
Analysis of the data provided by these schools
(below) reveals seasonal variations and
correlations with the concomitant metadata. Of
schools with complete data sets, unusually high
surface ozone values were reported during the
summer of 2003.
Photo courtesy U.S. EPA
Ozone-damaged plant (left) and normal plant
(right) Ozone damage causes 1-5 billion per year
of damage to crops.
Jicín ozone125 ppb
(From National Crop Loss Assessment Network,
published in Federal Register (Vol. 62, No. 138,
7/18/97))
Photo courtesy NARA, photographer Gene
Daniels/U.S. EPA
August 13
Jicín ozone115 ppb
Compared to climatology, temperatures during this
summer were also significantly above average.
August 14
RH OH ? R. H2O R. O2 ? RO2. 
RH OH ? R. H2O R. O2 ? RO2. 
Since temperature and ozone production are
considered to be directly related, it is clear
that the high student ozone data observed in the
summer of 2003 is the result of the anomalous
weather patterns.
Ozonesonde Analysis

• Stagnant Atmospheric Conditions (with little
  movement of air)
• High Pressure Anticyclones

• Cloudless Skies
• High Temperatures
• Low Wind Speeds

Departures from Four-Year Seasonal Averages in
Jicín
2003 Worst Year for Ozone in Europe
Introduction
Czech Republic
Hohenpeissenberg, Germany
In the GLOBE program, students acquire hands-on
experience with environmental science by taking
measurements, analyzing data, and contributing to
the global effort to better understand the
atmosphere and how human activity has affected
its composition. As part of the GLOBE Surface
Ozone Protocol, schools in the Czech Republic
have been consistently reporting weather and
ozone measurements since 2001 with the assistance
of the TEREZA Association for Environmental
Education, the organization that serves as the
GLOBE country partner for the Czech Republic.
Students use the handheld Eco-Badge test
card/Zikua optical reader system developed at
NASA Langley to collect daily ozone measurements,
thus generating multiyear data records at sites
located across the country.
Examining ozonesondes from mid-August 2001, 2002,
2003, and 2004 in Hohenpeissenberg, Germany,3 it
is clear that parts of 2003 were anomalous.
Boundary layer ozone in mid-August of 2003 was
over 70 ppb (see red arrow).
Conclusions
Czech GLOBE Schools Making Surface Ozone
Measurements
Analyses of daily ozone data gathered from Czech
schools in 2001 to 2004 show anomalously high
values for the summer of 2003, consistent with
similar research conducted during that same year.
The student data also agree well with ozone and
weather measurements obtained from other sources,
increasing student and scientist confidence in
the utility of the GLOBE ozone data. This
project supports the future use of
student-derived data products in areas such as
data validation and modeling of ozone
distributions.
Zikua test cards are treated with a chemical
reagent that changes from white to purple when
exposed to ozone. The Zikua is used to quantify
the color change.
Ozone levels, on average, are higher during
summers when temperatures are above average and
surface scalar wind speeds are below average
(when there is less circulation of air and more
opportunity for ozone pollution to accumulate).
Table Limits for Ozone in the US and EU.
Europe is more strict than the United States
regarding ozone requirements.
References
1Czech Hydrometeorological Institute - Air
Quality Protection Division, Air Pollution in the
Czech Republic in 2003. 2NOAA Air Resources
Laboratory HYSPLIT On-line Transport Model. 3V.
Brackett, NASA Langley Research Center, personal
communication, 2005 Naja, M., H. Akimoto, and J.
Staehelin, Ozone in background and
photochemically aged air over central Europe
Analysis of long-term ozone data from
Hohenpeissenberg and Payerne, J. Geophys. Res.,
108(D2), 4063, 2003. EEA (2004) Air pollution
by ozone in Europe in summer 2004, EEA Topic
report No 3/2005.
criteria dropped for the 1 hour average in the
US in 1997.