Quantitative investigation of stratospheric mixing processes by means of long lived radon decay products

A model of tracer transport process in the meridional plane of lower stratosphere is briefly outlined and the corresponding partial differential equation for tracer concentration is deduced. For the long lived radon daughters RaD(Pb210) and RaF(Po210) in the Northern Hemisphere stratosphere such equations can be simplified to one dimensional stationary form, describing the quasivertical transport of these isotopes. The mean values of quasivertical velocity and turbulent diffusion coefficient in the lower stratosphere of different latitudes of Northern Hemisphere are estimated by comparison of last equation solutions with the published results of aircraft measurements of RaD and RaF concentration in 1961 and 1962. These estimated values agree with the known qualitative ideas on latitudinal and seasonal changes of the stratospheric mixing intensity.