INFORMATION-CONTENT OF UMKEHR AND SOLAR BACKSCATTERED ULTRAVIOLET (SBUV)-2 SATELLITE DATA FOR OZONE TRENDS AND SOLAR RESPONSES IN THE STRATOSPHERE

Within the past few years, several papers have been published which pr esent updated profile ozone trends from the recently revised ground-ba sed Umkehr record [Miller et al., 1995] and the combined Nimbus 7 sola r backscattered ultraviolet (SBUV) and NOAA 11 SBUV 2 satellite data r ecord [Hollandsworth et al., 1995; Miller et al., 1996]. Within these papers, however, there has remained an overriding question as to the a ctual information content of the measurement systems and their ability to detect atmospheric responses. In this paper, we compare the ozone trends and responses to the 11-year solar cycle (derived from model an d/or data specifications of these effects) to results of forward model /retrieval algorithm computations through the algorithms. We consider data at northern midlatitudes (30 degrees-50 degrees N) so that we may compare the satellite results with those of the ground-based systems. Our results indicate that the Umkehr data contain only four independe nt pieces of information in the vertical and that the SBUV system cont ains five. In particular, we find that consideration should be restric ted to the following regions; Umkehr: the sum of Umkehr layers 1-5, an d layers 6, 7, and 8+ (the sum of layers 8 and above), SBUV: the sum o f layers 1-5, and layers 6, 7, 8, and 9+ (the sum of layers 9 and abov e). Additionally, we compare the actual trends and solar coefficients derived in these layers for the periods 1968-1991 and 1979-1991 for th e Umkehr and SBUV data. Finally, we include within the latter comparis ons the stratospheric aerosol and gas experiment (SAGE) I and II resul ts from Wang et al. [1996] and the computations from the ozonesondes.