During summer 1997, speciated reactive nitrogen (NO, NO₂, peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN), HNO₃, and particulate nitrate) was measured in conjunction with total reactive nitrogen (NO_y) at the high-alpine research station Jungfraujoch (JFJ), 3580 m above sea level (asl). The individually measured NO_y components averaged to 82% of total NO_y. PAN was the most abundant reactive nitrogen compound and composed on average 36% of NO_y, followed by NO_x (22%), particulate nitrate (17%), and HNO₃ (7%). The NO_x/NO_y ratio averaged 0.25, but significantly lower values (0.15-0.20) were observed in the presence of high NO_y mixing ratios. A classification of the data by synoptic weather conditions indicated that thermally driven vertical transport has a strong impact on the mixing ratios measured at the JFJ during summer. A strong diurnal cycle with maximum mixing ratios in the late afternoon was observed for convective days with north-westerly advection at 500 hPa. In contrast, during a period of convective days with a wind speed below 7.5 m s^-1 at 500 hPa, no obvious diurnal cycle was observed. Under these meteorological conditions the convective boundary layer can be significantly higher over the Alps (i.e., around 4 km asl) than over the surrounding lowlands. Subsequent advection may finally result in the export of reactive nitrogen reservoir compounds to the free troposphere and hence influence global atmospheric chemistry.