Anomalous isotope effects in atmospheric ozone and carbon dioxide. The anomalous isotopic composition of atmospheric ozone, which has been a puzzle for over twenty years, will be investigated by laboratory and atmospheric measurements. An understanding of the source of this anomaly and its effect on the isotopic composition of other trace atmospheric gases, especially CO2, would provide unique opportunities for constraining the tropospheric and stratospheric ozone budgets and determining the his ....Anomalous isotope effects in atmospheric ozone and carbon dioxide. The anomalous isotopic composition of atmospheric ozone, which has been a puzzle for over twenty years, will be investigated by laboratory and atmospheric measurements. An understanding of the source of this anomaly and its effect on the isotopic composition of other trace atmospheric gases, especially CO2, would provide unique opportunities for constraining the tropospheric and stratospheric ozone budgets and determining the history of a particular air mass. The method of detection will be high resolution FTIR spectroscopy which, in contrast to traditional mass-spectrometric methods, provides information about the position of the heavy atom in an enriched ozone molecule and requires no sample preparation.Read moreRead less
Western Australia severe weather prediction: optimising forecasts using new data sources and improved high-resolution models. WA suffers unusually high exposure to severe tropical and extra-tropical weather, from its size and geographical location. This project will develop enhanced data assimilation and modelling techniques, using emerging high-resolution satellite and other data to improve the timeliness, accuracy and reliability of weather forecasts for WA. Outcomes include: improved forecas ....Western Australia severe weather prediction: optimising forecasts using new data sources and improved high-resolution models. WA suffers unusually high exposure to severe tropical and extra-tropical weather, from its size and geographical location. This project will develop enhanced data assimilation and modelling techniques, using emerging high-resolution satellite and other data to improve the timeliness, accuracy and reliability of weather forecasts for WA. Outcomes include: improved forecast systems for predicting severe weather affecting WA (and consequently Australia), and ensemble forecast systems that provide valuable probabilistic information, such as confidence limits in the forecasts. Better forecasts issued earlier for severe weather events will allow appropriate planning and management measures, thereby reducing their present high social and economic cost.Read moreRead less
Isotopic fractionation in planetary atmospheres. Ongoing changes in the Earth's atmosphere, such as ozone depletion, demonstrate the need to understand atmospheric photochemical processes. Isotopic fractionation is one vehicle for obtaining
detailed insight into these processes. The proposed research will
increase our understanding of fundamental molecular processes and use these new results to improve our knowledge of isotopic fractionation in planetary atmospheres. The resulting models wil ....Isotopic fractionation in planetary atmospheres. Ongoing changes in the Earth's atmosphere, such as ozone depletion, demonstrate the need to understand atmospheric photochemical processes. Isotopic fractionation is one vehicle for obtaining
detailed insight into these processes. The proposed research will
increase our understanding of fundamental molecular processes and use these new results to improve our knowledge of isotopic fractionation in planetary atmospheres. The resulting models will lead to new insight into the Earth's ozone chemistry and the recent evolution of Titan's and Venus' atmospheres, including how much water may have been present on Venus in the recent past. The research program also enables Australian participation in three international spacecraft
missions.
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The coldest region on Earth gets even colder. Studying the observable atmospheric indicators of climate change is of national interest and importance. It strengthens the Australia's participation and further recognition in this research area. This project adds to the Australia's contribution to fundamental atmospheric physics and complements work carried out by other Australian researchers. Australian science further benefits from satellite data access and analyses skills. Development of interna ....The coldest region on Earth gets even colder. Studying the observable atmospheric indicators of climate change is of national interest and importance. It strengthens the Australia's participation and further recognition in this research area. This project adds to the Australia's contribution to fundamental atmospheric physics and complements work carried out by other Australian researchers. Australian science further benefits from satellite data access and analyses skills. Development of international collaborations in this research area and involvement in several international satellite projects is important for future national atmospheric and space programs. Postgraduate training in this area provides expertise needed at many Australian organisations. Read moreRead less
First realistic modelling of the effects of Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) wave energy in the ionosphere over the Australian region. Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) wave activity is known to produce perturbations of the ionosphere electron density. This affects technologies that involve High Frequency (HF) propagation in the ionosphere such as over-the-horizon radar (OTHR) and radio astronomy. Australia relies on OTHR for surveillance beyond our coastline using the Jindalee Operational Radar Network. Austr ....First realistic modelling of the effects of Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) wave energy in the ionosphere over the Australian region. Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) wave activity is known to produce perturbations of the ionosphere electron density. This affects technologies that involve High Frequency (HF) propagation in the ionosphere such as over-the-horizon radar (OTHR) and radio astronomy. Australia relies on OTHR for surveillance beyond our coastline using the Jindalee Operational Radar Network. Australia is also in competition for the next generation radio telescope (the SKA). This project will develop a world first model that combines ULF and HF physics to provide advanced understanding of the generation processes of radar Doppler clutter and differential phase errors in radio astronomy interferometer telescopes.Read moreRead less
AN INTEGRATED STUDY OF ATMOSPHERIC WAVE GENERATION AND COUPLING. Small-scale atmospheric gravity waves play an important, but not well understood, role in determining the state of the atmosphere. Observations to be made in northern Australia in 2005-2006 will bring together different kinds of radars and other instruments to study rain production processes in thunderstorms. Results will be used in a high-resolution numerical model to test wave generation by storms and to study their impact on the ....AN INTEGRATED STUDY OF ATMOSPHERIC WAVE GENERATION AND COUPLING. Small-scale atmospheric gravity waves play an important, but not well understood, role in determining the state of the atmosphere. Observations to be made in northern Australia in 2005-2006 will bring together different kinds of radars and other instruments to study rain production processes in thunderstorms. Results will be used in a high-resolution numerical model to test wave generation by storms and to study their impact on the atmosphere. The project will contribute to the improvement of weather radar measurements of rainfall and to improvement in numerical weather forecasting and climate prediction. It will provide high-quality training for postgraduate students in the use of state-of-the-art instrumentation and models.Read moreRead less