Episodes of extremely low ozone columns were observed over the territory of
Russia in the Arctic winter of 2015/2016 and the beginning of spring 2016. We
compare total ozone columns (TOCs) from different remote sensing techniques
(satellite and ground-based observations) with results of numerical modelling
over the territory of the Urals and Siberia for this period. We demonstrate
that the provided monitoring systems (including the new Russian Infrared
Fourier Spectrometer IKFS-2) and modern three-dimensional atmospheric models
can capture the observed TOC anomalies. However, the results of observations
and modelling show differences of up to 20 %–30 % in TOC
measurements. Analysis of the role of chemical and dynamical processes
demonstrates that the observed short-term TOC variability is not a result of
local photochemical loss initiated by heterogeneous halogen activation on
particles of polar stratospheric clouds that formed under low temperatures in
the mid-winter.</p
