Articles | Volume 20, issue 15
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-9525-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-9525-2020
Research article
 | 
13 Aug 2020
Research article |  | 13 Aug 2020

Influences of hydroxyl radicals (OH) on top-down estimates of the global and regional methane budgets

Yuanhong Zhao, Marielle Saunois, Philippe Bousquet, Xin Lin, Antoine Berchet, Michaela I. Hegglin, Josep G. Canadell, Robert B. Jackson, Edward J. Dlugokencky, Ray L. Langenfelds, Michel Ramonet, Doug Worthy, and Bo Zheng

Data sets

The IGAC/SPARC Chemistry-Climate Model Initiative Phase-1 (CCMI- 1) model data output M. I. Hegglin, and J.-F. Lamarque http://catalogue.ceda.ac.uk/uuid/9cc6b94df0f4469d8066d69b5df879d5

Short summary
The hydroxyl radical (OH), which is the dominant sink of methane (CH4), plays a key role in closing the global methane budget. This study quantifies how uncertainties in the hydroxyl radical can influence top-down estimates of CH4 emissions based on 4D Bayesian inversions with different OH fields and the same surface observations. We show that uncertainties in CH4 emissions driven by different OH fields are comparable to the uncertainties given by current bottom-up and top-down estimations.
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