Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/K006002/1
Ice NUcleation Process Investigation And Quantification
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor PJ Connolly, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr J Crosier, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr KN Bower, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr JR Dorsey, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr H Ricketts, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor MW Gallagher, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor TW Choularton, The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Grant held at:
- The University of Manchester, Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
- Science Area:
- Atmospheric
- Terrestrial
- Overall Classification:
- Atmospheric
- ENRIs:
- Biodiversity
- Environmental Risks and Hazards
- Global Change
- Natural Resource Management
- Science Topics:
- Boundary Layer Meteorology
- Land - Atmosphere Interactions
- Radiative Processes & Effects
- Tropospheric Processes
- Water In The Atmosphere
- Abstract:
- In this proposal we are seeking funds to take part in a field campaign that we have been invited to contribute to, which has international participants, is multidisciplinary, and will study aerosol-cloud interactions at the Jungfraujoch mountain site in the Swiss Alps in winter 2013. This is a cost effective and timely project, building on previous NERC investment. The Earth's radiation budget is very greatly affected by clouds, and human-induced changes to the particle loading affecting them, known as indirect effects, are large and highly uncertain. A large part of this uncertainty is the result of poor knowledge of the fundamental aerosol and cloud properties and processes, leading to their poor representation in the current state-of-the-science models. Indeed the IPCC did not have any assessment of the sign, let alone the uncertainty in radiative forcing, which was attributable to the effects of aerosols on ice clouds as they thought that the uncertainties were at present too large. Hypotheses: 1. That the rapid transitions between ice and mixed phase / liquid clouds are due to aerosol-cloud interactions. 2. That the number of ice crystals within the clouds observed at Jungfraujoch can be explained by the heterogeneous IN observed at a site upwind of the clouds 3. That laboratory derived ice nucleation parameterisations, based on surrogates of atmospheric particles (e.g. dust, biological particles, soot) are adequate to explain primary ice formation rates within the clouds. 4. That the ice-ice aggregation rates derived from the NERC SIMPLEX project (PI: Connolly) can be used to explain ice-ice aggregation in the real atmosphere. 5. That the secondary ice multiplication is a strong contributor to ice within these clouds. We propose to gain further insight into these problems and test these hypotheses by conducting a field campaign followed by extensive data analysis and modelling. The field campaign will have several novel facets: 1. State-of-the-science cloud microphysics measurements, including, 2DS and CPI-3V. 2. Novel measurements of biological, dust, black carbon, volatile and total aerosols as well as their enrichment within ice particles at the site. 3. Measurements of ice nuclei using IN counters, both at the site (in-cloud) and at an upwind site. 4. A proven collaboration with international partners, involving scientists from Switzerland and several institutes in Germany. 5. Expertise from NCAS instrument scientists in the deployment of instruments into the field. 6. Measurements of profiles of aerosols and turbulence using lidar at the upwind site. In order to interpret the measurements we will use a detailed aerosol-cloud and precipitation interactions model, developed at Manchester as part of the APPRAISE research programme by the PI: Connolly. This will enable us to take the aerosols measured at two sites and use them to test ice nucleation parameterisations in the model and verify them against data from ice nucleus counters and in-cloud measurements of ice crystal concentrations. The model will be used to derive enrichment factors for the different particles. It will also allow us to address the various objectives. The data analysis and modelling program will benefit from: 1. Expertise from NCAS instrument scientists in the analysis of data and derivation of data products. 2. PDRA: Christopher Dearden who has a range of expertise in modelling cloud microphysical processes using both mesoscale models and detailed bin microphysics models. 3. PDRA: Ian Crawford who has a range of expertise in field deployment of microphysics probes and interpretation. 4. Close collaboration with colleagues in the field ice nucleation and parameterisation so that the latest developments can be incorporated into the analysis. We feel that there is the potential to make large gains here by bringing together world leading scientists to the same field campaign with similar, but distinct aims.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/K006002/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Standard Grant (FEC)
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Standard Grant
This grant award has a total value of £479,474
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| DI - Other Costs | Indirect - Indirect Costs | DA - Investigators | DA - Estate Costs | DI - Staff | DI - Equipment | DA - Other Directly Allocated | DI - T&S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £31,245 | £133,504 | £38,467 | £54,780 | £154,973 | £32,165 | £6,441 | £27,900 |
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