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Atmospheric methane growth reached an exceptionally high rate of 15.1 ± 0.4 parts per billion per year in 2020 despite a probable decrease in anthropogenic methane emissions during COVID-19 lockdowns 1 . Here we quantify changes in methane sources and in its atmospheric sink in 2020 compared with 2019. We find that, globally, total anthropogenic emissions decreased by 1.2 ± 0.1 teragrams of methane per year (Tg CH 4 yr -1 ), fire emissions decreased by 6.5 ± 0.1 Tg CH 4  yr -1 and wetland emissions increased by 6.0 ± 2.3 Tg CH 4  yr -1 . Tropospheric OH concentration decreased by 1.6 ± 0.2 per cent relative to 2019, mainly as a result of lower anthropogenic nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions and associated lower free tropospheric ozone during pandemic lockdowns 2 . From atmospheric inversions, we also infer that global net emissions increased by 6.9 ± 2.1 Tg CH 4  yr -1 in 2020 relative to 2019, and global methane removal from reaction with OH decreased by 7.5 ± 0.8 Tg CH 4  yr -1 . Therefore, we attribute the methane growth rate anomaly in 2020 relative to 2019 to lower OH sink (53 ± 10 per cent) and higher natural emissions (47 ± 16 per cent), mostly from wetlands. In line with previous findings 3,4 , our results imply that wetland methane emissions are sensitive to a warmer and wetter climate and could act as a positive feedback mechanism in the future. Our study also suggests that nitrogen oxide emission trends need to be taken into account when implementing the global anthropogenic methane emissions reduction pledge 5 ., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

The 2018 drought was one of the worst European droughts of the twenty-first century in terms of its severity, extent and duration. The effects of the drought could be seen in a reduction in harvest yields in parts of Europe, as well as an unprecedented browning of vegetation in summer. Here, we quantify the effect of the drought on net ecosystem exchange (NEE) using five independent regional atmospheric inversion frameworks. Using a network of atmospheric CO 2 mole fraction observations, we estimate NEE with at least monthly and 0.5° × 0.5° resolution for 2009-2018. We find that the annual NEE in 2018 was likely more positive (less CO 2 uptake) in the temperate region of Europe by 0.09 ± 0.06 Pg C yr -1 (mean ± s.d.) compared to the mean of the last 10 years of -0.08 ± 0.17 Pg C yr -1 , making the region close to carbon neutral in 2018. Similarly, we find a positive annual NEE anomaly for the northern region of Europe of 0.02 ± 0.02 Pg C yr -1 compared the 10-year mean of -0.04 ± 0.05 Pg C yr -1 . In both regions, this was largely owing to a reduction in the summer CO 2 uptake. The positive NEE anomalies coincided spatially and temporally with negative anomalies in soil water. These anomalies were exceptional for the 10-year period of our study. This article is part of the theme issue 'Impacts of the 2018 severe drought and heatwave in Europe: from site to continental scale'.

During the summer of 2018, a widespread drought developed over Northern and Central Europe. The increase in temperature and the reduction of soil moisture have influenced carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) exchange between the atmosphere and terrestrial ecosystems in various ways, such as a reduction of photosynthesis, changes in ecosystem respiration, or allowing more frequent fires. In this study, we characterize the resulting perturbation of the atmospheric CO 2 seasonal cycles. 2018 has a good coverage of European regions affected by drought, allowing the investigation of how ecosystem flux anomalies impacted spatial CO 2 gradients between stations. This density of stations is unprecedented compared to previous drought events in 2003 and 2015, particularly thanks to the deployment of the Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) network of atmospheric greenhouse gas monitoring stations in recent years. Seasonal CO 2 cycles from 48 European stations were available for 2017 and 2018. Earlier data were retrieved for comparison from international databases or national networks. Here, we show that the usual summer minimum in CO 2 due to the surface carbon uptake was reduced by 1.4 ppm in 2018 for the 10 stations located in the area most affected by the temperature anomaly, mostly in Northern Europe. Notwithstanding, the CO 2 transition phases before and after July were slower in 2018 compared to 2017, suggesting an extension of the growing season, with either continued CO 2 uptake by photosynthesis and/or a reduction in respiration driven by the depletion of substrate for respiration inherited from the previous months due to the drought. For stations with sufficiently long time series, the CO 2 anomaly observed in 2018 was compared to previous European droughts in 2003 and 2015. Considering the areas most affected by the temperature anomalies, we found a higher CO 2 anomaly in 2003 (+3 ppm averaged over 4 sites), and a smaller anomaly in 2015 (+1 ppm averaged over 11 sites) compared to 2018. This article is part of the theme issue 'Impacts of the 2018 severe drought and heatwave in Europe: from site to continental scale'.

Remote sensing and in situ instruments are presented and compared in the same location for accurate CO(2) mixing ratio measurements in the atmosphere: (1) a 2.064 microm Heterodyne DIfferential Absorption Lidar (HDIAL), (2) a field deployable infrared Laser Diode Spectrometer (LDS) using new commercial diode laser technology at 2.68 microm, (3) LICOR NDIR analyzer and (4) flasks. LDS, LICOR and flasks measurements were made in the same location, LICOR and flasks being taken as reference. Horizontal HDIAL measurements of CO(2) absorption using aerosol backscatter signal are reported. Using new spectroscopic data in the 2 microm band and meteorological sensor measurements, a mean CO(2) mixing ratio is inferred by the HDIAL in a 1 km long path above the 15m height location of the CO(2) in situ sensors. We compare HDIAL and LDS measurements with the LICOR data for 30 min of time averaging. The mean standard deviation of the HDIAL and the LDS CO(2) mixing ratio results are 3.3 ppm and 0.89 ppm, respectively. The bias of the HDIAL and the LDS measurements are -0.54 ppm and -0.99 ppm, respectively.

Methane is an important greenhouse gas, and its atmospheric concentration has nearly tripled since pre-industrial times. The growth rate of atmospheric methane is determined by the balance between surface emissions and photochemical destruction by the hydroxyl radical, the major atmospheric oxidant. Remarkably, this growth rate has decreased markedly since the early 1990s, and the level of methane has remained relatively constant since 1999, leading to a downward revision of its projected influence on global temperatures. Large fluctuations in the growth rate of atmospheric methane are also observed from one year to the next, but their causes remain uncertain. Here we quantify the processes that controlled variations in methane emissions between 1984 and 2003 using an inversion model of atmospheric transport and chemistry. Our results indicate that wetland emissions dominated the inter-annual variability of methane sources, whereas fire emissions played a smaller role, except during the 1997-1998 El Niño event. These top-down estimates of changes in wetland and fire emissions are in good agreement with independent estimates based on remote sensing information and biogeochemical models. On longer timescales, our results show that the decrease in atmospheric methane growth during the 1990s was caused by a decline in anthropogenic emissions. Since 1999, however, they indicate that anthropogenic emissions of methane have risen again. The effect of this increase on the growth rate of atmospheric methane has been masked by a coincident decrease in wetland emissions, but atmospheric methane levels may increase in the near future if wetland emissions return to their mean 1990s levels.

During the summer of 2018, a widespread drought developed over Northern and Central Europe. The increase in temperature and the reduction of soil moisture have influenced carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange between the atmosphere and terrestrial ecosystems in various ways, such as a reduction of photosynthesis, changes in ecosystem respiration, or allowing more frequent fires. In this study, we characterize the resulting perturbation of the atmospheric CO2 seasonal cycles. 2018 has a good coverage of European regions affected by drought, allowing the investigation of how ecosystem flux anomalies impacted spatial CO2 gradients between stations. This density of stations is unprecedented compared to previous drought events in 2003 and 2015, particularly thanks to the deployment of the Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) network of atmospheric greenhouse gas monitoring stations in recent years. Seasonal CO2 cycles from 48 European stations were available for 2017 and 2018. Earlier data were retrieved for comparison from international databases or national networks. Here, we show that the usual summer minimum in CO2 due to the surface carbon uptake was reduced by 1.4 ppm in 2018 for the 10 stations located in the area most affected by the temperature anomaly, mostly in Northern Europe. Notwithstanding, the CO2 transition phases before and after July were slower in 2018 compared to 2017, suggesting an extension of the growing season, with either continued CO2 uptake by photosynthesis and/or a reduction in respiration driven by the depletion of substrate for respiration inherited from the previous months due to the drought. For stations with sufficiently long time series, the CO2 anomaly observed in 2018 was compared to previous European droughts in 2003 and 2015. Considering the areas most affected by the temperature anomalies, we found a higher CO2 anomaly in 2003 (+3 ppm averaged over 4 sites), and a smaller anomaly in 2015 (+1 ppm averaged over 11 sites) compared to 2018. This article is part of the theme issue 'Impacts of the 2018 severe drought and heatwave in Europe: from site to continental scale'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the nineties, atmospheric measurement systems have been deployed at Reunion Island, mainly for monitoring the atmospheric composition in the framework of NDSC/NDACC (Network for the Detection of Stratospheric Change/Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change). The location of Reunion Island presents a great interest because there are very few multi-instrumented stations in the tropics and particularly in the southern hemisphere. In 2012, a new observatory was commissioned in Maïdo at 2200m above sea level: it hosts various instruments for atmospheric measurements, including lidar systems, spectro-radiometers and in situ gas and aerosol measurements. This new high-altitude Maïdo station provides an opportunity: 1. to improve the performance of the optical instruments above the marine boundary layer, and to open new perspectives on upper troposphere and lower stratosphere studies; 2. to develop in situ measurements of the atmospheric composition for climate change surveys, in a reference site in the tropical/subtropical region of the southern hemisphere; 3. to offer trans-national access to host experiments or measurement campaigns for focused process studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an estimate of net ecosystem exchange (NEE) of CO2 in Europe for the years 2001–2007. It is derived with a data assimilation that uses a large set of atmospheric CO2 mole fraction observations (∼70 000) to guide relatively simple descriptions of terrestrial and oceanic net exchange, while fossil fuel and fire emissions are prescribed. Weekly terrestrial sources and sinks are optimized (i.e., a flux inversion) for a set of 18 large ecosystems across Europe in which prescribed climate, weather, and surface characteristics introduce finer scale gradients. We find that the terrestrial biosphere in Europe absorbed a net average of −165 Tg C yr−1 over the period considered. This uptake is predominantly in non-EU countries, and is found in the northern coniferous (−94 Tg C yr−1) and mixed forests (−30 Tg C yr−1) as well as the forest/field complexes of eastern Europe (−85 Tg C yr−1). An optimistic uncertainty estimate derived using three biosphere models suggests the uptake to be in a range of −122 to −258 Tg C yr−1, while a more conservative estimate derived from the a-posteriori covariance estimates is −165±437 Tg C yr−1. Note, however, that uncertainties are hard to estimate given the nature of the system and are likely to be significantly larger than this. Interannual variability in NEE includes a reduction in uptake due to the 2003 drought followed by 3 years of more than average uptake. The largest anomaly of NEE occurred in 2005 concurrent with increased seasonal cycles of observed CO2. We speculate these changes to result from the strong negative phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation in 2005 that lead to favorable summer growth conditions, and altered horizontal and vertical mixing in the atmosphere. All our results are available through [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A synthesis inversion based on the atmospheric zoom model TM5 is used to derive top-down estimates of CH4 emissions from individual European countries for the year 2001. We employ a model zoom over Europe with 1°x1° resolution that is two-way nested into the global model domain (with resolution of 6°x4°). This approach ensures consistent boundary conditions for the zoom domain and thus European top-down estimates consistent with global CH4 observations. The TM5 model, driven by ECMWF analyses, simulates synoptic scale events at most European and global sites fairly well, and the use of high-frequency observations allows exploiting the information content of individual synoptic events. A detailed source attribution is presented for a comprehensive set of 56 monitoring sites, assigning the atmospheric signal to the emissions of individual European countries and larger global regions. The available observational data put significant constraints on emissions from different regions. Within Europe, in particular several Western European countries are well constrained. The inversion results suggest up to 50-90% higher anthropogenic CH4emissions in 2001 for Germany, France and UK compared to reported UNFCCC values (EEA, 2003). A recent revision of the German inventory, however, resulted in an increase of reported CH4 emissions by 68.5% (EEA, 2004), being now in very good agreement with our top-down estimate. The top-down estimate for Finland is distinctly smaller than the a priori estimate, suggesting much smaller CH4 emissions from Finnish wetlands than derived from the bottom-up inventory. The EU-15 totals are relatively close to UNFCCC values (within 4-30%) and appear very robust for different inversion scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]