The vertical distribution of the concentration of sea salt in the marine atmosphere near Hawaii

Abstract

The vertical distribution of the sea-salt concentration has been obtained in the lowest 800 m of the atmosphere over the sea windward of Oahu. Hawaii. for eight days in October and November of 1981. Although the sea-salt profiles varied from day to day, reflecting changes in wind speed, temperature structure and other parameters, a marked salt concentration gradient was nearly always observed between about 19 and 30 m. The average sea-salt concentration at 19 m, about 22 μg m^-3, ecreased to about half that value, 11 μg m^-3 at 30 m. From there, the salt concentration decreased slowly to an average of about 5 μg m^-3 at 600 m above the sea.