A. D. Clarke, ^* D. Davis, V. N. Kapustin, F. Eisele, G. Chen, I. Paluch, D. Lenschow, A. R. Bandy, D. Thornton, K. Moore, L. Mauldin, D. Tanner, M. Litchy, M. A. Carroll, J. Collins, G. Albercook

New particle formation in a tropical marine boundary layer setting was characterized during NASA's Pacific Exploratory Mission-Tropics A program. It represents the clearest demonstration to date of aerosol nucleation and growth being linked to the natural marine sulfur cycle. This conclusion was based on real-time observations of dimethylsulfide, sulfur dioxide, sulfuric acid (gas), hydroxide, ozone, temperature, relative humidity, aerosol size and number distribution, and total aerosol surface area. Classic binary nucleation theory predicts no nucleation under the observed marine boundary layer conditions.

A. D. Clarke, V. N. Kapustin, K. Moore, M. Litchy, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA. D. Davis, F. Eisele, G. Chen, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. F. Eisele, L. Mauldin, D. Tanner, Atmospheric Chemistry Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA. I. Paluch and D. Lenschow, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA. A. R. Bandy and D. Thornton, Department of Chemistry, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA. M. A. Carroll and G. Albercook, Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Sciences, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI, USA. J. Collins, NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA.
^*   To whom correspondence should be addressed.