ORCID
- Mark Fitzsimons: 0000-0002-6443-6087
Abstract
Measurements of pre-industrial conditions are of paramount importance for understanding historical climate change. The Southern Ocean and Antarctic continent are some of the least polluted environments on planet Earth. Alkylamines can rapidly partition into aerosols, increasing their mass, as well as form new particles altogether. We demonstrate the importance of pelagic “open ocean” (OO) and sympagic “sea ice” (SI) regions in supplying distinct organic nitrogen aerosol components. In the aerosol phase, dimethylamine (DMA) and trimethylamine (TMA) are both secondary, though DMA likely originates mainly from pelagic regions, while TMA is associated mainly with sympagic regions. Parallel measurements in ice and surface waters reveal that melting sea ice contains a factor of four more TMA than coastal Antarctic Peninsula waters; and seventeen times more TMA than OO regions - suggesting additional coastal Antarctic sources. To better interpret future climate change, we recommend employing regional atmospheric chemistry models to understand these diverse aerosol sources.
DOI Link
Publication Date
2025-12-12
Publication Title
npj Climate and Atmospheric Science
Volume
9
Acceptance Date
2025-11-25
Deposit Date
2026-01-15
Additional Links
Recommended Citation
Dall'osto, M., Fitzsimons, M., Brean, J., Akenga, P., Jones, A., Lachlan-Cope, T., Sotomayor, A., Berdalet, E., Vaque, D., Harrison, R., Mansour, K., Rinaldi, M., Decesari, S., Beddows, D., & Paglione, M. (2025) 'Multiple oceanic sources of alkylamines in Southern Ocean atmospheres', npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, 9. Available at: 10.1038/s41612-025-01284-6
