SUESS Seminar - Sara Lance

Seminar

Date: Thursday 11 December 2025
Time:13:45-14:45
Location: Ahlmansalen

Clouds have a major impact on the transport, chemical processing, and removal of atmospheric pollutants. Predicting changes to the composition of the atmosphere thus requires understanding the processes by which clouds, gases, and aerosols interact. Recent research at Whiteface Mountain field station in the North Eastern United States (a research site with a continuous long-term record of cloud water measurements that, until recently, have focused on the chemical pollutants responsible for “acid rain” and sulfate aerosol) has revealed a doubling in cloud water organic carbon concentrations since measurements began in 2009. This dramatic increasing trend was an unexpected result, which is further evaluated using additional independent datasets from within the region, as presented in this talk. Potential driving factors behind the increasing organic carbon trends observed are discussed, including increased influence from biomass burning smoke, increased biogenic emissions and/or a changing chemical regime characterized by relatively high concentrations of reactive nitrogen chemical species. Despite the complexity of organic compounds and the many challenges they present, as organics become an ever larger fraction of atmospheric pollutants, it is increasingly important to understand their sources, transformation and fate.

Host: Fredrik Mattsson