Definition and Determination of Laminae in Ozone Profiles

Ozone profiles measured by sondes often display thin layers of substantially enhanced or depressed ozone concentration, which are called laminae. Laminae are important because they reveal much stronger long-term trends than the ozone concentration itself and seem to be more sensitive to various factors. The paper presents our definition and method of determination of laminae in comparison with other methods of lamina definition. This is important for clarifying some differences between the lamina-related results of different authors and for examination of long-term trends in lamina characteristics. The sensitivity of long-term trends to changes of methods of lamina determination is tested and found small, without a noticeable influence of changes of methods on trends.