Nitrous oxide (or nitrous oxide, N2O) is a major greenhouse gas, along with carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4), and is about 300 times more potent than CO2. Nitrous oxide is also well known as a major ozone-depleting gas in the stratosphere, making it an urgent topic of research. However, because nitrous oxide lasts about 120 years in the atmosphere, fundamental research requires data from the distant past, and the only way to analyze it is through fossilized air from the past, preserved in air bubbles in polar ice sheets. In addition, in order to trace the source of this nitrous oxide, it is necessary to measure not only the concentration, but also the isotopic compositions, which is a kind of fingerprint. In two recent studies, our laboratory applied the isotopic measurement method for the first time in Korea and produced the most reliable data internationally by tracking the natural fluctuations over the past 11,700 years as well as the alteration process caused by human activities over the past 100 years.
Journal Link(1) >> https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022JD038281
Journal Link(2) >> https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023EA002840