Atmospheric particles

Dust is the most abundant species of aerosol in the atmosphere. While mineral dust from deserts is the largest source, an important but less well-studied component is soil dust from sparsely vegetated surfaces. Commonly referred to as “anthropogenic dust”, arising from the influence of human activities on land surfaces and subsequent increase in wind erosion and dust emissions, this source is believed to contribute a substantial fraction to the total global dust load. However, the contribution and climate impact of anthropogenic dust, through interactions with radiation, clouds and precipitation, is poorly quantified.

Emissions of Asian Anthropogenic Aerosols (A3) are rapidly changing - most notably black carbon and sulphate aerosol precursors from India and China. The resulting range of climate impacts and societal hazards may dominate regionally over greenhouse gas induced trends for the next several decades, but the implications are as yet insufficiently explored. CATHY (Climate implications of rapid changes in Asian Anthropogenic Aerosol emissions: Temperature, Hydrological cycle and variabilitY) tackles the urgent need for quantifying climate related hazards resulting from ongoing and projected changes in A3 emissions.

In EPIC we are investigating a possible link between changes in air pollution and a trend towards more hazardous extreme precipitation. Our overall goal is to increase our understanding of what controls extreme precipitation and reduce the uncertainty in estimates of future extremes. At this stage of our project, we are analyzing observational data and running cloud models to investigate how heavy precipitation reacts to our particle emissions.

Global temperatures are rising due to the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In addition to increasing greenhouse gas emissions, human activity has changed the composition of particles in the atmosphere. These have masked some of the warming caused by the greenhouse gases. How large is this cooling effect, and how has it changed over time?

The Arctic is warming more than twice as fast as the rest of the world, with dramatically decreasing trends in sea-ice and snow cover (AMAP,2017). This ‘Arctic amplification’ of global warming is a feature of human-made climate change, but its causes and consequences are not fully understood.

The EU-funded project ACACIA (Advancing the Science for Aviation and Climate) aims to provide improved scientific knowledge of the non-co₂ impacts from aviation emissions of relevance for the development of harmonised policies and regulations for a more climate-friendly aviation system.

The AVIATE (Aviation in a low-carbon society) project will provide better understanding of the climate impact of aviation, both for Norway and globally, and explore options for reducing that impact.

How do gases and particles affect turbulence in the lower atmosphere?

Predicting how the climate will change over the next 20-50 years, as well as defining emissions pathways to keep the world on track, requires a better understanding of how several human and natural factors will affect the climate in coming decades. These include how atmospheric aerosols affect the Earth’s radiation budget, and the roles of clouds and oceans in driving climate change.