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The eruption of the submarine Hunga Tonga Hunga Hapaii volcano on 15 January 2022 was associated with a powerful blast that injected sulfur and water to altitudes up to 58 km. In this study, we combine the data from various satellite instruments (MLS, OMPS-LP, CALIOP, SAGE III, Aeolus, COSMIC-2, ACE-FTS, GOES, Himawari), ground-based lidars at various locations, meteorological radiosoundings as well as model simulation using CLaMS chemistry-transport model to investigate the evolution of the stratospheric moisture and sulfate aerosol plume at a wide range of scales—from minutes and kilometres to monthly and planetary scale. We show that due to extreme altitude reach of the eruption, the volcanic plume has circumnavigated the Earth in only one week and dispersed nearly pole-to-pole in three months. The observations provide evidence for an unprecedented increase in the global stratospheric water mass by 13% as compared to climatological levels. As there are no efficient sinks of water vapour in the stratosphere, this perturbation is expected to persist several years. The eruption has also led to a 5-fold increase in the stratospheric aerosol load, the highest in the last three decades yet factor of 6 smaller than the previous major eruption of Mt Pinatubo in 1991.The unique nature and magnitude of the global stratospheric perturbation by the Hunga eruption ranks it among the most remarkable climatic events in the modern observation era. Given the expected longevity of the stratospheric humidity perturbation, the Hunga eruption can be said to have initiated a new era in stratospheric gaseous chemistry and particle microphysics with a wide range of potential long-lasting repercussions for the global stratospheric composition and dynamics. The eruption has thus provided a unique natural testbed, lending itself to studies of climate sensitivity to strong change in both stratospheric gaseous and particulate composition.Spanning more than one year, the satellite and ground-based observations available to-date enable the first accurate assessment of the annual-scale stratospheric aftermath of the Hunga Tonga eruption, uncovering its climate-altering capacity.

The Australian bushfires of 2019/20 caused a massive injection of combustion products into the stratosphere that led to a persistent planetary-scale perturbation of all stratospheric climate-relevant variables. This extreme event enabled study of a striking atmospheric phenomenon, the smoke-charged vortex (SCV) – a persistent synoptic-scale anticyclone, which acts to confine the carbon-rich aerosol clouds during their solar-driven rise. This way, highly-concentrated absorbing aerosols are lofted above 30 km, which prolongs their stratospheric residence time and radiative effects. Here, we use lidar observations at Lauder, New Zealand together with high-resolution radiosonde data and ozone soundings as well as satellite observations (CALIPSO, MLS, TROPOMI) and ERA5 reanalysis to characterize the optical, chemical and thermodynamical properties of a matured 7-km-tall SCV during its transfer over the South Island at 27 km altitude. The gaseous composition of the SCV was characterized by strongly enhanced water vapour and depleted ozone concentrations, leading to a synoptic-scale ozone hole with the total column reduced by up to 20%. The lidar measurements reveal a characteristic bottom-side elongation of the smoke bubble – a tail of aerosols extending over hundreds of kilometers and rotating together with the main body. Using long-term ground-based lidar and satellite measurement records, we show that monthly-mean stratospheric aerosol optical depth in early 2020 was highest since the major eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991. With that, the removal of smoke aerosol from the stratosphere took longer than one year.

To validate products of the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT), we observed vertical profiles of aerosols, thin cirrus clouds, and tropospheric ozone with a mobile-lidar system that consisted of a two-wavelength (532 and 1064 nm) polarization lidar and a tropospheric ozone differential absorption lidar (DIAL). We used these lidars to make continuous measurements over Saga (33.24° N, 130.29° E) during 20–31 March 2015. High ozone and high aerosol concentrations were observed almost simultaneously in the altitude range 0.5–1.5 km from 03:00 to 20:00 Japan Standard Time (JST) on 22 March 2015. The maximum ozone volume mixing ratio was ∼ 110 ppbv. The maxima of the aerosol extinction coefficient and optical depth at 532 nm were 1.2 km−1 and 2.1, respectively. Backward trajectory analysis and the simulations by the Model of Aerosol Species IN the Global AtmospheRe (MASINGAR) mk-2 and the Meteorological Research Institute Chemistry-Climate Model, version 2 (MRI-CCM2), indicated that mineral dust particles from the Gobi Desert and an air mass with high ozone and aerosol (mainly sulfate) concentrations that originated from the North China Plain could have been transported over the measurement site within about 2 days. These high ozone and aerosol concentrations impacted surface air quality substantially in the afternoon of 22 March 2015. After some modifications of its physical and chemical parameters, MRI-CCM2 approximately reproduced the high ozone volume mixing ratio. MASINGAR mk-2 successfully predicted high aerosol concentrations, but the predicted peak aerosol optical thickness was about one-third of the observed value.

To improve the lead time and accuracy of predictions of localized heavy rainfall, which can cause extensive damage in urban areas in Japan, we developed a mobile Raman lidar (RL) system for measuring the vertical distribution of the water vapor mixing ratio (w) in the lower troposphere. The RL was installed in a small trailer for easy deployment to the upwind side of potential rainfall areas to monitor the inflow of moist air before rainfall events. We describe the lidar system and present validation results obtained by comparing the RL-measured data with collocated radiosonde, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and high-resolution objective analysis data. The comparison results showed that RL-derived w agreed within 10 % with values obtained by radiosonde at altitude ranges between 0.14 and 1.5 km in the daytime and between 0.14 and 5–6 km at night in the absence of low clouds; the vertical resolution of the RL measurements was 75–150 m, their temporal resolution was less than 20 min, and the measurement uncertainty was less than 30 %. RL-derived precipitable water vapor values were similar to or slightly lower than those obtained by GNSS at night, when the maximum height of RL measurements exceeded 5 km. The RL-derived w values were at most 1 g/kg (25 %) larger than local analysis data. Four months of continuous operation of the RL system demonstrated its utility for monitoring water vapor distributions for heavy rain forecasting.

Solar absorption spectra in the near-infrared region have been continuously acquired with a ground-based (g-b) high-resolution Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) at Saga, Japan, since July 2011. Column-averaged dry-air mole fractions of greenhouse gases were retrieved from the measured spectra for the period from July 2011 to December 2014. Aircraft measurements of CO2 and CH4 for calibrating the g-b FTS data were performed in January 2012 and 2013, and it is found that the g-b FTS and aircraft data agree to within ± 0.2 %. The column-averaged dry-air mole fractions of CO2 and CH4 (XCO2 and XCH4) show increasing trends, with average growth rates of 2.3 and 9.5 ppb yr−1, respectively, during the ∼ 3.5 yr of observation. We compared the g-b FTS XCO2 and XCH4 data with those derived from backscattered solar spectra in the short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) region measured with Thermal And Near-infrared Sensor for carbon Observation–Fourier Transform Spectrometer (TANSO-FTS) onboard the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT): NIES SWIR Level 2 products (versions 02.xx). Average differences between TANSO-FTS and g-b FTS data (TANSO-FTS minus g-b FTS) are 0.40 ± 2.51 and −7.6 ± 13.7 ppb for XCO2 and XCH4, respectively. Using aerosol information measured with a sky radiometer at Saga, we found that the differences between the TANSO-FTS and g-b FTS XCO2 data are moderately negatively correlated with aerosol optical thickness and do not depend explicitly on aerosol size. In addition, from several aerosol profiles measured with lidar located right by the g-b FTS, we were able to show that the presence of cirrus clouds tends to cause an overestimation in the TANSO-FTS XCO2 retrieval, while high aerosol loading in the lower troposphere tends to cause an underestimation.

We have improved an ozone DIfferential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) system, originally developed in March 2010. The improved DIAL system consists of a Nd:YAG laser and a 2 m Raman cell filled with 8.1 × 105 Pa of CO2 gas which generate four Stokes lines (276, 287, 299, and 312 nm) of stimulated Raman scattering, and two receiving telescopes with diameters of 49 and 10 cm. Using this system, 44 ozone profiles were observed in the 1–6 km altitude range over Saga (33.24° N, 130.29° E) in 2012. High-ozone layers were observed at around 2 km altitude during April and May. Ozone column amounts within the 1–6 km altitude range were almost constant (19.1 DU on average) from January to March, and increased to 26.7 DU from late April to July. From mid-July through August, ozone column amounts decreased greatly to 14.3 DU because of exchanges of continental and maritime air masses. Then in mid-September they increased again to 22.1 DU within 1−6 km, and subsequently decreased slowly to 17.3 DU, becoming almost constant by December. The Meteorological Research Institute's chemistry–climate model version 2 (MRI-CCM2) successfully predicted most of these ozone variations with the following exceptions. MRI-CCM2 could not predict the high-ozone volume mixing ratios measured at around 2 km altitude on 5 May and 11 May, possibly in part because emissions were assumed in the model to be constant (climatological data were used). Ozone volume mixing ratios predicted by MRI-CCM2 were low in the 2–6 km range on 7 July and high in the 1–4 km range on 19 July compared with those measured by DIAL.

To validate products of the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT), we observed vertical profiles of aerosols, thin cirrus clouds, and tropospheric ozone with a mobile lidar system that consisted of a two-wavelength (532 and 1064 nm) polarization lidar and a tropospheric ozone Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL). We used these lidars to make continuous measurements over Saga (33.24° N, 130.29° E) during 20–31 March 2015. High ozone and high aerosol concentrations were observed almost simultaneously in the altitude range 0.5–1.5 km from 03:00 to 20:00 Japan Standard Time on 22 March 2015. The maximum ozone volume mixing ratio was ~ 110 ppbv. The maxima of the aerosol extinction coefficient and optical depth at 532 nm were 1.2 km−1 and 2.1, respectively. Backward trajectory analysis indicated that an air mass with high ozone and aerosol concentrations could have been transported from Northeast Asia. Based on the lidar data and the ground-based in-situ measurements at Saga, this air mass could have been transported to the surface by vertical mixing when the planetary boundary layer developed in the daytime. This plume, which contained high ozone and aerosol pollutant concentrations, impacted surface air quality substantially. After some modifications of its physical and chemical parameters, the Meteorological Research Institute Chemistry-Climate Model, version 2 (MRI-CCM2) approximately reproduced the high-ozone volume-mixing ratio. The Model of Aerosol Species IN the Global AtmospheRe (MASINGAR) mk-2 successfully predicted high aerosol concentrations, but the predicted peak aerosol optical thickness was about one-third of the observed value.

An increase in stratospheric aerosols caused by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Nabro (13.37° N, 41.70° E) on 12 June 2011 was detected by lidar at Tsukuba (36.05° N, 140.13° E) and Saga (33.24° N, 130.29° E) in Japan. The maximum backscattering ratios at a wavelength of 532 nm were 2.0 at 17.0 km on 10 July 2011 at Tsukuba and 3.6 at 18.2 km on 23 June 2011 at Saga. The maximum integrated backscattering coefficients (IBCs) at 532 nm above the first tropopause height were 4.18×10−4 sr−1 on 11 February 2012 at Tsukuba and 4.19×10−4 sr−1 on 23 June 2011 at Saga, respectively. A time series of lidar observational results at Tsukuba have also been reported from January 2008 through May 2012. Increases in stratospheric aerosols were observed after the volcanic eruptions of Mt. Kasatochi (52.18° N, 175.51° E) in August 2008 and Mt. Sarychev Peak (48.09° N, 153.20° E) in June 2009. The yearly averaged IBCs at Tsukuba were 2.54×10−4 sr−1, 2.48×10−4 sr−1, 2.45×10−4 sr−1, and 2.20×10−4 sr−1 for 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, respectively. These values were about twice the IBC background level (1.21×10−4 sr−1) from 1997 to 2001 at Tsukuba. We briefly discuss the influence of the increased aerosols on climate and the implications for analysis of satellite data.

On 4 June 2011, the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle volcanic complex (40.6° S, 72.1° W) in Chile erupted violently and injected volcanic aerosols into the atmosphere. For the safety of civil aviation, continuous lidar observations were made at Lauder, New Zealand (45.0° S, 169.7° E), from 11 June through 6 July 2011. The purpose of our study is to quantify the influence of the volcanic ejections from large eruptions, and we use the data from the ground-based lidar observation. We analyzed lidar data at a wavelength of 532 nm and derived the backscattering ratio and depolarization ratio profiles. During June and July, within the altitude range of 10–15 km, the volcanic aerosols had high depolarization ratios (20–35%), an indication of non-spherical volcanic ash particles. The time series of the backscattering ratio during continuous observations had three peaks occurring at about 12-day intervals: 26.7 at 11.2 km on 11 June, 18.1 at 12.0 km on 23 June, and 5.3 at 11.1 km on 6 July. The optical depth of the volcanic aerosols was 0.45 on 11 June, when the continuous lidar observation started, 0.31 on 23 June, and 0.12 on 6 July. The depolarization ratio values remained high up to a month after the eruption, and the small wavelength exponent calculated from the backscattering coefficients at 532 nm and 1064 nm suggests that a major constituent of the volcanic aerosols was large, non-spherical particles. The presence of volcanic ash in the stratosphere might affect the error in Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT) XCO2 retrieval using the 1.6 μm band. We briefly discuss the influence of the increased aerosols on GOSAT products.