Department of Geography, Cambridge » Atmospheric processes

Improving our quantitative understanding of dynamical, surface, cloud and aerosol microphysical processes in the atmosphere not only for meteorological clouds but also for volcanic and biomass burning plumes. In current climate and numerical weather prediction models cloud processes are often crudely represented and do not interact. A better description of individual processes and their interaction is the focus of this research. The ultimate goal is to achieve a better representation of processes in models to improve the predictability of weather and climate.

Research projects

Research projects currently being undertaken on this theme include:

	Radar-supported Next-Generation Forecasting of Volcanic Ash Hazard (R4AsH) Explosive volcanic eruptions present a global hazard to health, the environment and the economy. The disruption they can cause is well documented. Consequently, forecasting the extent and evolution of ash-rich plumes is vital for hazard assessment. R4AsH is a NERC funded highlight topic that seeks to develop a new approach to determining the time-varying source term parameters through the use of satellite ash retrievals.
	TwoRains TwoRains is an international and interdisciplinary ERC funded project investigating the interplay and dynamics of winter and summer rainfall systems, investigate the nature of human adaptation to the ecological conditions created by those systems. It is using the Indus Civilisation to ask the question “Does climate change really cause collapse?”
	Using Large Eddy Simulations to parameterise the Convective Cloud Field (LES4CCFM) Despite much effort in improving the representation of physical processes in atmospheric models for climate and numerical weather prediction the representation of clouds including convection, their interaction with the planetary boundary layer and large scale dynamics remains a major source of uncertainty. This limits not only our ability to predict weather and climate but also their value for decision-making on timescales from days to decades. The key issue in representing convection in global models is that the resolutions of these models are too coarse to represent individual convective clouds. Instead, models rely on physically based parameterization of convection. Improvements in the performance of climate and numerical weather prediction models will crucially depend on the development of better parametrizations for convection.
	Managing Air for Green Inner Cities (MAGIC) MAGIC is an ESPRC-funded Grand Challenge research project that aims to address the question "How to develop cities with no air pollution and no heat-island effect by 2050?"
	Preparing for Extreme and Rare Events in coastaL regions (PEARL) Coastal communities are among the most vulnerable to extreme flooding events. Surface runoff from heavy rainfall, high river levels and storm/tidal surges from the sea all pose significant flood risks, and can often occur in combination, with potentially devastating consequences. This is further compounded by the expected sea level rise over the next few decades due to human-induced climate change. Accordingly, the EU(FP7)-funded project PEARL has been set up to bring together world-leading technological and socio-economical expertise in order to develop more sustainable risk management solutions for coastal communities.