The First Detection of Shipborne Ozone Soundings in the South China Sea

The first shipborne ozone soundings (0–30 km) campaign in the South China Sea was conducted from 22 May to 15 June 2023, aiming to better investigate the ozone vertical structure over the South China Sea. Results show that ozone concentrations in the boundary layer over the South China Sea are higher than those at tropical marine sites. Balloon measurements revealed finer ozone lamina structures that satellite and reanalysis data could not reproduce. Notably, ozone in the upper troposphere (~13.5 km) decreased significantly due to transport by a tropical cyclone, while it increased slightly in the middle troposphere. These measurements provide valuable insights into ozone’s chemical structure and support the need for long-term monitoring of the vertical evolution of ozone from the surface to the middle stratosphere over oceanic regions.