Summertime measurements of selected nonmethane hydrocarbons in the Arctic and Subarctic during the 1988 Arctic Boundary Layer Expedition (ABLE 3A)

Approximately 1000 whole air samples were collected and assayed for selected C 2 ‐C 5 hydrocarbons during the 6‐week Arctic Boundary Layer Expedition (ABLE 3A). Transit flights enabled latitudinal (40°N to 83°N) and longitudinal (70°W to 155°W) profiles to be obtained for altitudes between 4000 and 6000 m yielding summertime background mixing ratios for ethane, ethyne, propane and n ‐butane of 1050±200, 100±40, 120±80 and 10±8 pptv, respectively. Drilling associated with oil exploration in the Alaskan North Slope area is suggested to be a probable source of the enhanced levels of alkanes observed in the Arctic region within a radius in excess of 300 km from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. A significant number of pollution plumes were encountered which could be attributed to wildfires. Factors describing the emissions caused by biomass burning relative to ethane for ethyne (0.40) and propane (0.08) were determined. An increase of hydrocarbon mixing ratios with altitude was observed during all but two of the missions. Therefore, the Arctic and sub‐Arctic are significantly influenced by the long‐range transport of pollutants from nonlocal sources. A single vertical profile made in the vicinity of Wallops Island, Virginia, revealed elevated levels of isoprene, numerous hydrocarbons of the types associated with the leakage of natural gas and fossil fuel combustion, and substantial concentrations of nitrogen oxides and ozone. This implies that long‐range transport of various gases from urban areas, combined with local biogenic emissions of isoprene, are significant sources of regional tropospheric ozone.