Laboratory measurements of NO₂ line parameters near 1600 cm⁻¹ for the interpretation of stratospheric spectra

Tunable diode laser laboratory measurements of infrared spectral parameters of selected NO 2 lines near 1600 cm −1 have been made to assess the contribution of uncertainties in these parameters to stratospheric measurements of NO 2 made using the Balloon‐borne Laser In‐Situ Sensor (BLISS) tunable diode laser spectrometer. Relative line intensities are measured to accuracies of better than 2%, with a root‐sum‐squared uncertainty in the absolute linestrengths of 4.5%. Air‐broadening coefficients have been determined from measurements at total pressures in the range 20–100 Torr, at températures of 293 K and 214 K. These results are also discussed in the light of the discrepancies between infrared instruments flown in the 1982 and 1983 Balloon Intercomparison Campaigns.