GAMES: Geolocation Assessment/validation Methods for EPS-SG ICI and MWI

acronym
GAMES
description

This project aims at investigating new methods for geolocating future satellite radiometers ICI/MWI. The approach followed is to select some known geolocation regerence that show distinctic signature in terms of brightness temperature. The definition of these signatures for each typology of geolocation reference is the core of the project. Two main geolocation reference will be considered: landmark referecne and meteorological refererence. For landmark reference, Sinthetic aperture radar data will be used, whereas for meteorological targets exixsting radiometer data are used.  

Funding institution
EUMETSAT
contact person ISAC
date inizio fine
2019-09-04 - 2020-09-03
istituz coord
Università di Roma La Sapienza

Progetto PRISM-GIAPPONE - University of Tokyo

acronym
PRISM-GIAPPONE
description

Contributo al progetto PRISM, in particolare per lo svolgimento delle seguenti attività:
1) Collection of Doppler radar data for tornadic storms and tornadoes in Italy - item (1);
2) Provision of grid point value data of numerical simulations on tornadic storms and tornadoes in Italy - item (2).

Funding institution
University of Tokyo
contact person ISAC
date inizio fine
2019-10-23 - 2020-03-13

TiPES – Tipping Points in the Earth System

acronym
TIPES
description

There is rising concern that several subsystems of the Earth may respond highly nonlinearly at critical future levels of anthropogenic forcing; these levels have recently been associated with tipping points (TPs). It is paramount to identify safe operating spaces for humanity and the planet in terms of these critical forcing levels, in order to prevent harmful transitions to alternative, undesirable states of the Earth system. The mechanisms leading to such abrupt transitions are only partly understood, and further research in this regard is urgently needed. State-of-art Earth System Models appear to respond too smoothly at TPs and have difficulties in simulating abrupt transitions that occurred in the planet’s history. TiPES will address these problems from several angles: 1. The project will identify subsystems that may exhibit abrupt transitions, and couplings between them, by focussing on paleoclimatic records and abrupt transitions therein. Novel methods to detect Early Warning Signals of forthcoming TPs, and to make skilful predictions on their basis, will be developed. 2. The potential shortcomings of models in representing TPs will be evaluated; in particular, TiPES will investigate how Bayesian calibration techniques can help enable these models to simulate past abrupt transitions. 3. TiPES will develop a generalized theory of climate sensitivity that accounts for the presence of TPs and feedbacks across various time scales. 4. To define safe operating spaces. TiPES will focus on dynamical system theory and on global stability notions for non-autonomous systems in order to estimate the stability of desirable states. 5. The results obtained by the project will be communicated to policy makers in a manner that facilitates decisions and their implementation. TiPES will develop formal approaches to define the socioeconomic risks of crossing TPs, and to derive decision strategies to keep anthropogenic forcing below levels where abrupt transitions may occur.

Funding institution
European Commission - Horizon 2020
contact person ISAC
date inizio fine
2019-09-01 - 2023-08-31
istituz coord
KOBENHAVNS UNIVERSITET

SZN-ABBACO - Studio tecnico-scientifico nell’ambito del progetto ABBaCo “Sperimentazioni Pilota Finalizzata al “Restauro Ambientale e Balneabilità del SIN Bagnoli-Coroglio”

acronym
SZN-ABBACO
description

Oggetto della presente Convenzione è la collaborazione tra le Parti nella realizzazione di uno studio tecnico-scientifico in grado di:
- monitorare le concentrazione e la composizione dell’aerosol segregato dimensionamene prima, durante e dopo le operazioni di bonifica nell’area SIN Bagnoli;
- prelevare ed analizzare campioni di particelle negli intervalli dimensionali “fine” (Dp <1 µm) e “coarse” (1 < Dp < 10 µm), per un periodo di circa un anno con frequenza mensile intensificando la frequenza durante le operazioni di bonifica;
- determinare la tossicità della frazione fine del particolato atmosferico mediante analisi del potenziale ossidativo del particolato.

Funding institution
Istituto Zoologico Anton Dorhn (SZN)
date inizio fine
2017-05-12 - 2020-01-11

PRIN 2017 – Redox-activity and Health-effects of Atmospheric Primary and Secondary aerosol (RHAPS)

acronym
PRIN 2017 - RHAPS
description

RHAPS è un progetto PRIN con capofila ISAC-CNR ed un consorzio a cui partecipano quattro atenei italiani. Lo scopo del progetto è quello di identificare proprietà specifiche del particolato atmosferico – o loro combinazioni – che sono responsabili delle proprietà tossicologiche degli aerosol. In particolare, i fattori determinanti dello stress ossidativo a livello cellulare verranno sistematicamente sottoposti ad indagine nel corso di due campagne intensive ed esperimenti in camera di reazione. L'indagine prenderà in considerazione sia composti primari e secondari dell'aerosol. I parametri prioritari considerati sono sia di natura microfisica (particelle ultrafini) che di natura chimica (presenza di composti reattivi, potenziale ossidativo). L'obiettivo finale è quello di arrivare all'individuazione di nuove metriche per descrivere il potenziale tossicologico del particolato atmosferico.

Funding institution
MIUR Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca
date inizio fine
2019-11-02 - 2022-11-01

The himalayan aerosol factory

Nepal Climate Observatory @ Pyramid

The results of a research on new particle formation at the Nepal Climate Observatory at Pyramid have been published in the journal Nature Geoscience. We observed that large amount of new particles can form in the Himalayan valleys from naturally emitted gaseous precursors and can be transported to high altitudes by the mountain winds and injected into the upper atmosphere. For the first time, this study shows that particle precursor gases are organic compounds emitted by vegetation at lower altitudes.