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Sensitive response of atmospheric oxidative capacity to the uncertainty in the emissions of nitric oxide (NO) from soils in Amazonia
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  • Ben H. Lee,
  • J. William Munger,
  • Steven C. C. Wofsy,
  • Luciana V Rizzo,
  • James Y. S. Yoon,
  • Alex Turner,
  • Joel A Thornton,
  • Abigail L.S. Swann
Ben H. Lee
Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
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J. William Munger
Harvard University
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Steven C. C. Wofsy
Harvard University
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Luciana V Rizzo
Universidade de Sao Paulo
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James Y. S. Yoon
University of Washington
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Alex Turner
University of Washington
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Joel A Thornton
University of Washington
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Abigail L.S. Swann
University of Washington

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Abstract

Soils are a major source of nitrogen oxides, which in the atmosphere help govern its oxidative capacity. Thus the response of soil nitric oxide (NO) emissions to forcings such as warming or forest loss has a meaningful impact on global atmospheric chemistry. We find that the soil emission rate of NO in Amazonia from a common inventory is biased low by at least an order of magnitude in comparison to tower-based observations. Accounting for this regional bias decreases the modeled global methane lifetime by 1.4% to 2.6%. In comparison, a fully deforested Amazonia, representing a 37% decrease in global emissions of isoprene, decreases methane lifetime by at most 4.6%, highlighting the sensitive response of oxidation rates to changes in emissions of NO compared to those of terpenes. Our results demonstrate that improving our understanding of soil NO emissions will yield a more accurate representation of atmospheric oxidative capacity.