Carbonyl sulfide (OCS) in the boundary layer of the marine atmosphere was measured by gas chromatography with flame photometric detection on board ship following a meridional transect in the Atlantic Ocean between 37°S and 51°N. Overall, OCS levels from 174 individual samples averaged 537 ppt with a standard deviation of 104 ppt. A pronounced northward increase in OCS of, on the average, 26 ppt per 10° latitude was found, together with a mean interhemispheric ratio of 1.25 between OCS in northern and southern hemisphere air masses. OCS correlated significantly with CH4 and CO values obtained during the cruise by an independent investigator.
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Bingemer et al. (1990) studied this question.