OPERATION OF A COMMUNITY MARINE-ATMOSPHERIC SAMPLING FACILITY AT TUDOR HILL, BERMUDA

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This award will provide funding to continue operation of the Tudor Hill marine-atmospheric sampling station in Bermuda. The Tudor Hill facility has served as an observation and monitoring station of the marine boundary layer since 1988. The continued operation and maintenance of the Tudor Hill site will facilitate research concerning the chemistry and physics of the marine troposphere and ocean-atmosphere exchange processes -- topics that are central to predicting and mitigating the effects of anticipated future climatic and environmental change. This project will make significant educational contributions at a number of levels, including undergraduate education opportunities through the NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates program and through courses taught at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences.The troposphere plays important roles in the global cycling of many elements, the global radiation budget, and in the global distribution of organic compounds, nutrients, microbes, and pollutants. At present, many aspects of atmospheric composition, transport, and atmosphere-ocean exchange remain poorly understood, limiting our ability to predict and mitigate the effects of future climate change. Central to improving our understanding of these topics is the ability to observe and sample the marine boundary layer. By virtue of its location in the western North Atlantic Ocean, Bermuda has been a key location for numerous field studies of the marine troposphere. With this renewed support, researchers will continue the collection and archiving of meteorological, aerosol, and rain samples/data, and other atmospheric collections for analysis by external investigators.