Snowpack and precipitation chemistry at high altitudes

As an observational scientist, James P. Lodge Jr. contributed to the knowledge of atmospheric chemistry significantly and in many ways. As far back as the 1960s, his achievements included organization and oversight of a national survey of precipitation chemistry. This paper recognizes his broad interest in precipitation, focusing on recent studies of snow chemistry in the high-elevation regimes. A brief overview of snow chemistry in the American Rocky Mountains is provided in the context of other snow chemistry studies in the United States, Europe, the Himalayas, and the polar ice-sheets. A comparison of major ion concentrations in snow and neighboring NADP wet deposition sites in the Rocky Mountains follows. These data are then put in perspective of the major ion concentrations observed in snow at different global locations. This comparison touches on the similarities and differences in ion concentrations in the mid-latitude sites and the Polar Regions. A case study is reviewed to identify specific sources of sulfur and nitrogen oxides affecting snow chemistry in the American Rockies. The survey closes with a brief discussion of potentially important recent observations of snowpack chemistry interactions with the troposphere, the hydrosphere and the lithosphere.