Testing a new explanation of cloud feedback on global climate. A new analysis suggests that the sensitivity of global climate to greenhouse gases is largely controlled by the upward transport of water vapour in the lower troposphere, but the analysis did not examine clouds, which must be involved for the mechanism to be valid. The aim of the proposed project is to determine whether variations in cloud implied by this new explanation are supported by observations and process models. If the explan ....Testing a new explanation of cloud feedback on global climate. A new analysis suggests that the sensitivity of global climate to greenhouse gases is largely controlled by the upward transport of water vapour in the lower troposphere, but the analysis did not examine clouds, which must be involved for the mechanism to be valid. The aim of the proposed project is to determine whether variations in cloud implied by this new explanation are supported by observations and process models. If the explanation is confirmed, then for the first time in over 30 years of intense research it will be possible to determine the long-term severity of global warming by examining the present-day atmosphere. The expected outcome of this research is to clarify how and why low clouds change in altered climates.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL150100035
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,765,281.00
Summary
Revisiting the physics of clouds. Revisiting the physics of clouds: This fellowship project aims to bring new rigour to climate modelling by improving our understanding of key phenomena like clouds and storms. Earth’s climate has taken a number of turns in the recent and geologic past that so far cannot be reproduced in models. Clouds and atmospheric turbulence are also a problem for weather and climate prediction, the conceptual understanding of which now has evident flaws. The hypothesis of th ....Revisiting the physics of clouds. Revisiting the physics of clouds: This fellowship project aims to bring new rigour to climate modelling by improving our understanding of key phenomena like clouds and storms. Earth’s climate has taken a number of turns in the recent and geologic past that so far cannot be reproduced in models. Clouds and atmospheric turbulence are also a problem for weather and climate prediction, the conceptual understanding of which now has evident flaws. The hypothesis of this project is that these two problems are strongly linked, and that this link may be exploited to solve problems across disciplines. This project aims to systematically re-evaluate our conceptual understanding of cloud physics, and investigate how this affects our understanding of climate phenomena in Earth’s past and future.Read moreRead less
Cloudiness over the Southern Ocean: reducing a key knowledge gap and source of climate model uncertainty. Southern Ocean clouds are key ingredients of the global climate system and yet are only poorly understood and poorly represented in climate models. Through the use of advanced observational analysis techniques this research will provide a deep understanding of key Southern Ocean cloud regimes and improve their representation in models.
The Southern Ocean boundary layer: winds, turbulence, sea spray and clouds. Both satellite products and climate models have large biases in the energy and water budgets over the Southern Ocean (SO). This is a direct consequence of a poor understanding of the structure and dynamics of the SO atmospheric boundary layer, which has arisen from an inability to make the necessary observations in this harsh environment. Due to the availability of new Australian research infrastructure, large steps forw ....The Southern Ocean boundary layer: winds, turbulence, sea spray and clouds. Both satellite products and climate models have large biases in the energy and water budgets over the Southern Ocean (SO). This is a direct consequence of a poor understanding of the structure and dynamics of the SO atmospheric boundary layer, which has arisen from an inability to make the necessary observations in this harsh environment. Due to the availability of new Australian research infrastructure, large steps forward are now possible with modest investment. This project will conduct and combine observations from the recently acquired marine vessel, RV Investigator, and the collocated airborne and surface observations to understand the structure and evolution of the unique, pristine SO boundary layer and to evaluate satellites and climate models.Read moreRead less
How does orography enhance precipitation in Australian wintertime storms? This project aims to employ targeted field observations, numerical simulations and new satellite capabilities to identify the dynamical and microphysical mechanisms that enhance and redistribute precipitation across the alpine regions of south eastern Australia and Tasmania. These observations will be used to evaluate operational numerical weather simulations specifically focusing on quantitative precipitation forecasts an ....How does orography enhance precipitation in Australian wintertime storms? This project aims to employ targeted field observations, numerical simulations and new satellite capabilities to identify the dynamical and microphysical mechanisms that enhance and redistribute precipitation across the alpine regions of south eastern Australia and Tasmania. These observations will be used to evaluate operational numerical weather simulations specifically focusing on quantitative precipitation forecasts and estimates. The observations will also be used to extend known biases in the national gridded precipitation analysis that are a result of the complex mountain terrain. This identification of the physical processes that enhance and redistribute precipitation over the alpine regions across south east Australia and Tasmania will lead to better precipitation estimates and forecasts and better water management.Read moreRead less
GBR as a significant source of climatically relevant aerosol particles. Every cloud drop is formed from a microscopic aerosol particle, known as a cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). In unpolluted environments the CCN particles originate from biogenic sources. Determining the magnitude and driving factors of biogenic aerosol production in different ecosystems is crucial to the development and improvement of climate models. This project aims to determine the mechanisms of new particle production fro ....GBR as a significant source of climatically relevant aerosol particles. Every cloud drop is formed from a microscopic aerosol particle, known as a cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). In unpolluted environments the CCN particles originate from biogenic sources. Determining the magnitude and driving factors of biogenic aerosol production in different ecosystems is crucial to the development and improvement of climate models. This project aims to determine the mechanisms of new particle production from one of the biggest ecosystems in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef. It is expected that the project will establish whether marine aerosol along the Queensland coast is coral-derived and show that this aerosol can affect the CCN concentration and therefore cloud formation and the hydrological cycle.Read moreRead less
Improving the physical understanding, numerical simulation and forecasts of severe storms and precipitation events over major Australian cities. This strategic research project will improve our physical understanding and numerical simulation of severe storms over major Australia cities, which underpins future improvements in the forecasts of such storms. It will add to the capability of households, local government and industry to better prepare for major rainfall, hail, wind and flood events.
Wattzup - a context-aware residential demand-response system for smart energy management. This project falls within the National Research Priorities an environmentally sustainable australia and frontier technologies for building and transforming Australian industries. This project will develop an innovative context aware smart energy management system that will effectively reduce consumption and wastage in residential energy usage among individual homes. It will also be an important new technolo ....Wattzup - a context-aware residential demand-response system for smart energy management. This project falls within the National Research Priorities an environmentally sustainable australia and frontier technologies for building and transforming Australian industries. This project will develop an innovative context aware smart energy management system that will effectively reduce consumption and wastage in residential energy usage among individual homes. It will also be an important new technology that will be able to support the Australian utility industry in terms of incorporating context-sensitive demand-response strategies. The key innovation of the system will be to leverage a range of rich contextual information that is easily accessible and available for effective residential energy management.Read moreRead less
ARC Centres of Excellence for Climate System Science. Our capacity to assess the threat of climate change is undermined by an unacceptable level of uncertainty in the understanding and modelling of regional climates. The Centre will undertake world-class research targeting identified weaknesses in the physical, chemical and biological components of the climate system. We will engage and nurture graduate students and postdoctoral follows through a program of graduate training and mentoring to per ....ARC Centres of Excellence for Climate System Science. Our capacity to assess the threat of climate change is undermined by an unacceptable level of uncertainty in the understanding and modelling of regional climates. The Centre will undertake world-class research targeting identified weaknesses in the physical, chemical and biological components of the climate system. We will engage and nurture graduate students and postdoctoral follows through a program of graduate training and mentoring to permanently transform our understanding of climate systems science particularly for the Australian region. The key outcome will be a dramatic enhancement in national capacity to understand and project the scale of future regional climate change.Read moreRead less