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Abstract

We present 2.5 years (from June 2006 to December 2008) of in-situ measurements of CO₂, O₂, CH₄, CO, N₂O and SF₆ mixing ratios sampled from 23, 90 and 163 m above ground on the Ochsenkopf tower in the Fichtelgebirge range, Germany (50°01'49" N, 11°48'30" E, 1022 m a.s.l.). In addition to the in-situ measurements, flask samples are taken at Ochsenkopf at approximately weekly intervals and are subsequently analysed for the mixing ratios of the same species, as well as H2, and the stable isotopes, δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O in CO₂. The in-situ measurements of CO₂ and O₂ from 23 m show substantial diurnal variations that are modulated by biospheric fluxes, combustion of fossil fuels, and by diurnal changes in the planetary boundary layer height. Measurements from 163 m exhibit only very weak diurnal variability, as this height (1185 m a.s.l.) is generally above the nocturnal boundary layer. CH₄, CO, N₂O and SF₆ show little diurnal variation even at 23 m owing to the absence of any significant diurnal change in the fluxes and the absence of any strong local sources or sinks. From the in-situ record, the seasonal cycles of the gas species have been characterized and the multi-annual trends determined. Because the record is short, the calculation of the trend is sensitive to inter-annual variations in the amplitudes of the seasonal cycles. However, for CH₄ a significant change in the growth-rate was detected for 2006.5–2008.5 as compared with the global mean from 1999 to 2006 and is consistent with other recent observations of a renewed increasing global growth rate in CH₄ since the beginning of 2007.