In-situ measurements of aerosol production from individual whitecaps during SEASAW

The production of sea salt aerosol particles is intimately linked to the process of whitecapping on ocean waves. One approach to the determination of sea spray source functions is to evaluate the production of aerosol from individual whitecaps and couple this with an estimate of total whitecap fraction to calculate the total aerosol production rate. We present aerosol measurements from two CLASP aerosol probes located on a tethered buoy and sampling at approximately 0.5 and 1 m above the sea surface under a wide range of wind speeds and whitecap conditions. The buoy was deployed from the RRS Discovery during the SEASAW project cruises in November/December 2006 and March/April 2007. A bubble imaging camera made simultaneous measurements of the bubble population at ~ 0.5 m below the surface. A motion package mounted on the buoy allows the measurements to be related to the buoys position on passing waves, and the inlet altitudes relative to mean sea level.