Australia's variable rainfall - how dry or wet can it really get? Australia’s rainfall is extremely variable, which means existing weather records are too short to calculate the true risk posed by droughts and floods. This project aims to quantify how naturally variable the rainfall coming from the Indo-Pacific mid-latitudes is, allowing recent rainfall extremes and future projections to be assessed in a long-term context. This project expects to produce new estimates of atmospheric moisture bud ....Australia's variable rainfall - how dry or wet can it really get? Australia’s rainfall is extremely variable, which means existing weather records are too short to calculate the true risk posed by droughts and floods. This project aims to quantify how naturally variable the rainfall coming from the Indo-Pacific mid-latitudes is, allowing recent rainfall extremes and future projections to be assessed in a long-term context. This project expects to produce new estimates of atmospheric moisture budgets between Australia and Antarctica based on a novel, 1000-year length reconstruction of moisture-bearing southern Indian Ocean storms. This new information is critically needed by water managers so that they can properly calculate (and ultimately prepare for) the worst of Australia’s rainfall-related risks.Read moreRead less
Dynamic Force Microscopy of small molecular assemblies. The possibility of manipulating a single molecule seems at first unreal, indeed 5 years ago it was pure science fiction. Through the gaining popularity of the Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) many perspectives about the molecular world are changing. Macroscopic effects such as adhesion and lubrication are now discussed in light of measurements made with this instrument. Newer work includes the observation of single protein unfolding experim ....Dynamic Force Microscopy of small molecular assemblies. The possibility of manipulating a single molecule seems at first unreal, indeed 5 years ago it was pure science fiction. Through the gaining popularity of the Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) many perspectives about the molecular world are changing. Macroscopic effects such as adhesion and lubrication are now discussed in light of measurements made with this instrument. Newer work includes the observation of single protein unfolding experiments. The biophysics oriented project detailed in this application will extend the AFM: into multi-molecular systems formed by self-assembly, such as cell membranes; into polyelectrolyte-surface interactions; and, finally into the sequencing of DNA.Read moreRead less
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
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
Southern Ocean aerosols: sources, sinks and impact on cloud properties. This project aims to provide fundamental process-level understanding of atmospheric aerosol processes over the Southern Ocean, a region that has a profound influence on the Australian and global climate and where climate models perform poorly. Comprehensive observations during 3 Southern Ocean voyages and land-based measurements will enhance our knowledge of aerosols and cloud formation in that region and provide much-needed ....Southern Ocean aerosols: sources, sinks and impact on cloud properties. This project aims to provide fundamental process-level understanding of atmospheric aerosol processes over the Southern Ocean, a region that has a profound influence on the Australian and global climate and where climate models perform poorly. Comprehensive observations during 3 Southern Ocean voyages and land-based measurements will enhance our knowledge of aerosols and cloud formation in that region and provide much-needed data for improving global climate models. Expected outcomes include more accurate seasonal and latitudinal representations of Southern Ocean aerosol populations, properties and sources. The main benefit includes improvements in weather forecasting and future climate projection for Australia and the Southern Hemisphere.Read moreRead less
Tracking flood waters over Australia using space gravity data. This project aims to assess the utility of near-real-time data from the currently operating space gravity satellite mission to quantify and track flood waters in Australia. Through analysis of the satellite data and fusion of observed signals with rainfall, river flows and conventional hydrological modelling, it expects to create new knowledge of soil moisture and movement of flood waters. Expected outcomes include a capability to im ....Tracking flood waters over Australia using space gravity data. This project aims to assess the utility of near-real-time data from the currently operating space gravity satellite mission to quantify and track flood waters in Australia. Through analysis of the satellite data and fusion of observed signals with rainfall, river flows and conventional hydrological modelling, it expects to create new knowledge of soil moisture and movement of flood waters. Expected outcomes include a capability to improve hydrological models by including the information of water signals obtained from the near-real-time observations. This should provide significant benefits such as more accurate land saturation maps and better predictions of runoff and flood risk.Read moreRead less
Evolutionary origins of sexual parasitism in an Australian freshwater fish. Carp gudgeons are the most abundant, widespread and biodiverse freshwater fishes in southeastern Australia. The unacknowledged presence of many cryptic species and sexually-parasitic lineages severely taints all research on this cornerstone group. This project aims to provide unrivalled evolutionary, genomic, and taxonomic insights into this new instance of vertebrate sexual parasitism, which offers a unique mix of resea ....Evolutionary origins of sexual parasitism in an Australian freshwater fish. Carp gudgeons are the most abundant, widespread and biodiverse freshwater fishes in southeastern Australia. The unacknowledged presence of many cryptic species and sexually-parasitic lineages severely taints all research on this cornerstone group. This project aims to provide unrivalled evolutionary, genomic, and taxonomic insights into this new instance of vertebrate sexual parasitism, which offers a unique mix of research advantages not displayed by any other sexual/unisexual complex. The knowledge gained could impact many research fields, including evolutionary theory addressing the unexplainable prevalence of sex, native fish ecology, and environmental monitoring of the Murray-Darling Basin, an ecosystem of world significance.Read moreRead less
The energetics and dynamics of chemical reactions of polyatomic molecules involving multiple electronic states. This project will produce, from first principles, the first quantitatively accurate computer simulations of chemical reactions which involve several atoms and multiple electronic states. Many of the most important chemical reactions in the atmosphere (and elsewhere) involve changing both the shape of the molecules and their electronic structure. Many of these reactions are difficult to ....The energetics and dynamics of chemical reactions of polyatomic molecules involving multiple electronic states. This project will produce, from first principles, the first quantitatively accurate computer simulations of chemical reactions which involve several atoms and multiple electronic states. Many of the most important chemical reactions in the atmosphere (and elsewhere) involve changing both the shape of the molecules and their electronic structure. Many of these reactions are difficult to study in the laboratory, and consequently computer simulation is an essential component of the study of such reactions. U nderstanding how these reactions occur, and how fast they proceed, are important to our understanding of the dynamics of the atmosphere and other large scale reactors.Read moreRead less
The changing relationship between the South Asian and Australian Monsoon in a warming world. The success or failure of the Australian and South Asian Monsoons can mean the difference between prosperity and severe hardship in the affected regions. This project will help to understand the causes of the monsoon variability, both natural and human-induced, and what the future might have in store.
Restoring amphibian populations in chytrid-impacted landscapes. This project aims to address an outstanding problem in wildlife disease ecology: how can we enable susceptible amphibians to persist in the face of the chytrid pathogen, which has devastated amphibian biodiversity? This project expects to generate new knowledge by experimentally trialling two highly promising interventions: immunising animals and creating disease refugia through simple habitat manipulations. Outcomes of this project ....Restoring amphibian populations in chytrid-impacted landscapes. This project aims to address an outstanding problem in wildlife disease ecology: how can we enable susceptible amphibians to persist in the face of the chytrid pathogen, which has devastated amphibian biodiversity? This project expects to generate new knowledge by experimentally trialling two highly promising interventions: immunising animals and creating disease refugia through simple habitat manipulations. Outcomes of this project include a framework for predicting how interventions might enable host-pathogen coexistence. This project should provide significant benefits including enhanced understanding of wildlife disease dynamics that will pave the way for interventions to restore amphibian biodiversity in chytrid-impacted landscapes.Read moreRead less