Publications

Journal article

Kaweeyanun N, Masters A, 2025,

Three-dimensional modelling of Ganymede’s Chapman–Ferraro magnetic field and its role in subsurface ocean induction

, Icarus, Vol: 426, ISSN: 0019-1035

In April 2023, the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) began its journey to orbit Jupiter’s largest and only magnetic moon, Ganymede. Part of the mission’s objectives aim to verify existence of the moon’s subsurface ocean and determine its structure through its induced response to external excitation by periodically varying magnetic field. Known contributions to the excitation are those from Jupiter’s dipole (at synodic period) and quadrupole (at half-synodic period) variations, and Ganymede’s inclined eccentric orbit around Jupiter (at orbital period). We propose that Ganymede’s magnetopause, where the Chapman–Ferraro (C–F) magnetic field arises from local currents, also contributes to subsurface ocean induction. This article introduces the first three-dimensional model of the C–F field and its outputs at Ganymede’s subsurface ocean and larger magnetosphere. The field is shown to be non-uniform — strongest near upstream Ganymede’s subflow region and gradually weakening away from it. Magnetopause asymmetry due to the Jovian guide field results in largely synodic variation of the C–F field, with exceptions near Ganymede’s equator and subflow meridian where asymmetry effects are minimal and the variations are half-synodic. The C–F field amplitude is of general order ∼50 nT, which is significant relative to excitation from the Jovian field. Comparisons to Galileo data and magnetohydrodynamic simulation results suggest the model is useful, therefore the magnetopause effects must be considered in future induction modeling of Ganymede’s subsurface ocean ahead of the Juice mission.

Journal article

Harrison JA, Pearce PM, Yang F, Nielsen MP, Brindley HE, Ekins-Daukes NJet al., 2024,

Evaluating potential power output of terrestrial thermoradiative diodes with atmospheric modelling

, iScience, Vol: 27, ISSN: 2589-0042

A thermoradiative diode is a device that can generate power through thermal emission from the warm Earth to the cold night sky. Accurate assessment of the potential power output requires knowledge of the downwelling radiation from the atmosphere. Here, accurate modelling of this radiation is used alongside a detailed balance model of a diode at the Earth’s surface temperature to evaluate its performance under nine different atmospheric conditions. In the radiative limit, these conditions yield power densities between 0.34 and 6.5 W.m-2, with optimal bandgaps near 0.094 eV. Restricting the angles of emission and absorption to less than a full hemisphere can marginally increase the power output. Accounting for non-radiative processes, we suggest that if a 0.094 eV device would have radiative efficiencies more than two orders of magnitude lower than a diode with a bandgap near 0.25 eV, the higher bandgap material is preferred.

Journal article

Tippett A, Gryspeerdt E, Manshausen P, Stier P, Smith TWPet al., 2024,

Weak liquid water path response in ship tracks

, Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol: 24, Pages: 13269-13283, ISSN: 1680-7316

The assessment of aerosol–cloud interactions remains a major source of uncertainty in understanding climate change, partly due to the difficulty in making accurate observations of aerosol impacts on clouds. Ships can release large numbers of aerosols that serve as cloud condensation nuclei, which can create artificially brightened clouds known as ship tracks. These aerosol emissions offer a “natural”, or “opportunistic”, experiment to explore aerosol effects on clouds, while also disentangling meteorological influences. Utilizing ship positions and reanalysis wind fields, we predict ship track locations, colocating them with satellite data to depict the temporal evolution of cloud properties after an aerosol perturbation. Repeating our analysis for a null experiment does not necessarily recover zero signal as expected; instead, it reveals subtleties between different null-experiment methodologies. This study uncovers a systematic bias in prior ship track research, due to the assumption that background gradients will, on average, be linear. We correct for this bias, which is linked to the correlation between wind fields and cloud properties, to reveal the true ship track response.We find that, once this bias is corrected for, the liquid water path (LWP) response after an aerosol perturbation is weak on average. This has important implications for estimates of radiative forcings due to LWP adjustments, as previous responses in unstable cases were overestimated. A noticeable LWP response is only recovered in specific cases, such as marine stratocumulus clouds, where a positive LWP response is found in precipitating or clean clouds. This work highlights subtleties in the analysis of isolated opportunistic experiments, reconciling differences in the LWP response to aerosols reported in previous studies.

Journal article

Rovithakis A, Voulgarakis A, 2024,

Wildfire aerosols and their impact on weather: a case study of the August 2021 fires in Greece using the WRF‐Chem model

, Atmospheric Science Letters, Vol: 25, ISSN: 1530-261X

Wildfires are significant contributors to atmospheric gases and aerosols, impacting air quality and composition. This pollution from fires also affects radiative forcing, influencing short-term weather patterns and climate dynamics. Our research employs the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) to investigate the repercussions of wildfires on aerosol abundances and associated immediate weather responses. We examine the summer season of 2021, a period marked by severe wildfire events in the country during a heatwave period. We conducted sensitivity experiments including and excluding wildfire emissions to measure their effects on aerosol optical depth (AOD), radiative forcing, and weather features such as temperature, humidity, clouds, and atmospheric circulation. Our findings demonstrate that the radiative impacts of wildfires negatively influence the local temperature over the fire smoke plume-affected areas. Conversely, neighbouring areas of continental Greece experience increases in temperature due to remote effects of wildfire emissions, caused by meteorological feedbacks that reduce atmospheric humidity. Crucially, including fire emissions significantly improves the simulated surface temperatures predicted by the model over the Greek domain. Our work demonstrates that wildfire-generated aerosols can significantly impact weather conditions and highlights the importance of including both local radiative effects and remote feedback for achieving more accurate weather prediction.

Journal article

Nykyri K, Di Matteo S, Archer MO, Ma X, Hartinger MD, Sarantos M, Zesta E, Paterson WRet al., 2024,

Could a low‐frequency perturbation in the Earth's magnetotail be generated by the lunar wake?

, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 51, ISSN: 0094-8276

Both ground based magnetometers and ionospheric radars at Earth have frequently detected Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) fluctuations at discrete frequencies extending below one mHz-range. Many dayside solar wind drivers have been convincingly demonstrated as driver mechanisms. In this paper we investigate and propose an additional, nightside generation mechanism of a low frequency magnetic field fluctuation. We propose that the Moon may excite a magnetic field perturbation of the order of 1 nT at discrete frequencies when it travels through the Earth's magnetotail 4–5 days every month. Our theoretical prediction is supported by a case study of ARTEMIS magnetic field measurements at the lunar orbit in the Earth's magnetotail. ARTEMIS detects statistically significant peaks in magnetic field fluctuation power at frequencies of 0.37–0.47 mHz that are not present in the solar wind.

Conference paper

Lewis Z, Beth A, Galand M, Henri P, Rubin M, Stephenson Pet al., 2024,

Constraining ion transport in the diamagnetic cavity of comet 67P

<jats:p>Comets are small icy bodies originating from the outer solar system that produce an increasingly dense gas coma through sublimation as they approach perihelion. Photoionisation of this gas results in a cometary ionosphere, which interacts with the impinging solar wind, leading to large scale plasma structures. One such structure is the diamagnetic cavity: the magnetic field-free inner region that the solar wind cannot penetrate. This region was encountered many times by the ESA Rosetta mission, which escorted comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for a two-year section of its orbit.Within the diamagnetic cavity, high ion bulk velocities have been observed by the Rosetta Plasma Consortium (RPC) instruments. The fast ions are thought to have been accelerated by an ambipolar electric field, but the nature and strength of this field are difficult to determine analytically. Our study therefore aims to model the impact of various electric field profiles on the ionospheric density profile and ion composition. The 1D numerical model we have developed includes three key ion species (H2O+, H3O+, and NH4+) in order to assess the sensitivity of each to the timescale of plasma loss through transport. NH4+ is of particular interest, as it has been previously shown to be the dominant ion species at low cometocentric distances near perihelion. It is only produced through the protonation of NH3, a minor component of the neutral gas, and we show that this makes it particularly sensitive to the electric field.We also compare the simulated electron density to RPC datasets, to find the electric field strength and profile which best recreate the plasma densities measured inside the diamagnetic cavity near perihelion. From this, we also constrain the radial bulk ion speed that is required to explain the observations with the model.</jats:p>

Conference paper

Beth A, Galand M, Modolo R, Leblanc F, Jia X, Huybrighs H, Carnielli Get al., 2024,

Ionospheric environment of Ganymede during the Galileo flybys

<jats:p>The Galileo spacecraft flew by Ganymede, down to 0.1 RG from the surface for the closest, six times giving us insight into its plasma environment. Its ionosphere, made of ions born from the ionisation of neutrals present in Ganymede&#8217;s exosphere, represents the bulk of the plasma near the moon around closest approach. As it has been revealed by Galileo and Juno, near closest approach the ion population is dominated by low-energy ions from the water ion group (O+, HO+, H2O+) and O2+. However, little is known about their density, spatial distribution, and effect on the surface weathering of the moon itself. Galileo G2 flyby has been extensively studied. Based on a comparison between observations and 3D test-particle simulations, Carnielli et al. (2020a and 2020b) confirmed the ion composition (debated at the time), highlighted the inconsistency between the assumed exospheric densities and the observed ionospheric densities, and derived the contribution of ionospheric ions as an exospheric source. However, other flybys of Ganymede are also available (e.g. G1, G7, G8, G28, and G29) providing in-situ measurements at different phases of Ganymede around Jupiter or jovian magnetospheric conditions at the moon. We extend the original study by Carnielli et al. to other flybys, and compare our modelled ion moments (ion number density, velocity, and energy distribution) with Galileo in-situ data. We discuss our results and contrast them with those obtained for the G2 flyby.&#160;&#160;</jats:p>

Journal article

Acevski M, Masters A,

Enhanced precipitation of energetic protons due to Uranus' asymmetric magnetic field

, Geophysical Research Letters, ISSN: 0094-8276

Journal article

Zeng Z, Yao Z, Liu J, Xu Y, Dunn WR, Zhang B, Archer MOet al., 2024,

Ultralow-frequency waves in Jupiter’s magnetopause boundary layer

, The Astrophysical Journal: an international review of astronomy and astronomical physics, Vol: 976, ISSN: 0004-637X

Ultralow-frequency (ULF) waves (∼tens of minutes period) are widely identified in the Jovian system and are believed to be associated with energy dissipation in the magnetosphere and ionosphere. Due to the magnetodisk oscillation related to planetary rotation, it is challenging to identify the periodicities inside the magnetosphere, although remote sensing observations of the polar emissions provide clear evidence of the tens of minutes pulsations. In this study, we take advantage of Juno's in situ measurements in the magnetopause boundary layer for a long duration, i.e., >4 hr, to directly assess the tens of minutes periodicities of the boundary dynamics caused by the interactions between the internal plasma and external solar wind. Through periodogram analysis on the magnetic field and particle data, we find ULF waves with periodicities of ∼18 minutes, ∼40 minutes, and ∼70–80 minutes, which is generally consistent with pulsations in multiple remote sensing observations. A multiple-harmonic ULF phenomenon was also identified in the observations. The periodicities from in situ measurements provide crucial clues in understanding the origin of pulsating wave/auroral emissions in the Jovian system. The results could also further our understanding of energy transfer and release between the internal plasma of Jupiter and external solar wind.

Journal article

Hanna E, Francis JA, Wang M, Overland JE, Cohen J, Luo D, Vihma T, Fu Q, Hall RJ, Jaiser R, Kim S-J, Köhler RH, Luu LN, Shen X, Erner I, Ukita J, Yao Y, Ye K, Choi H, Skific Net al., 2024,

Influence of high-latitude blocking and the northern stratospheric polar vortex on cold-air outbreaks under Arctic amplification of global warming

, Environmental Research: Climate

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>It is widely accepted that Arctic Amplification (AA) - enhanced Arctic warming relative to global warming - will increasingly moderate cold-air outbreaks to the midlatitudes. Yet, some recent studies also argue that AA over the last three decades to the rest of the present century may potentially contribute to more frequent severe winter weather including continued disruptive cold spells. To prepare society for future extremes, it is necessary to resolve whether AA and severe midlatitude winter weather are coincidental or physically linked. Severe winter weather events in the northern continents are often related to a range of stratospheric polar vortex configurations and atmospheric blocking, but these dynamical drivers are complex and still not fully understood. Here we review recent research advances and paradigms including a nonlinear theory of atmospheric blocking that helps to explain the location, timing and duration of AA/midlatitude weather connections, as well as studies of the polar vortex’s zonal asymmetric and intra-seasonal variations, its southward migration over continents, and its surface impacts. We highlight novel understanding of stratospheric polar vortex variability – polar vortex stretching and a stratosphere-troposphere oscillation – that have remained mostly hidden in the predominant research focus on sudden stratospheric warmings. A physical explanation of the two-way vertical coupling process between the polar vortex and blocking highs, taking into account local surface conditions, remains elusive. We conclude that evidence exists for tropical preconditioning of Arctic-midlatitude climate linkages. Recent research using very large-ensemble climate modelling provides an emerging opportunity to robustly quantify internal atmospheric variability when studying the potential response of midlatitude cold-air outbreaks to AA and sea-ice loss.</jats:p>

Journal article

Lai T, Toumi R, 2024,

Sensitivity of the energy conversion efficiency of tropical cyclones during intensification to sea surface temperature and static stability

, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, ISSN: 0035-9009

It is projected that the sea surface temperature (SST) increases under climate change and enhances tropical cyclone (TC) intensification directly. An opposing expected feature of climate change is the strengthening atmospheric static stability, which may suppress intensification. The intensity and diabatic heating are closely related through the secondary circulation, but it has been unclear whether both will change at the same rate. Here we show that they respond differently to stability changes. The efficiency of converting diabatic heating to kinetic energy (KE) of TCs to SST and static stability during the intensification stage is examined. In a set of idealised simulations, the efficiency does not have a significant relation with the SST. However the efficiency is found to decrease with increasing static stability at a rate of about K. It is shown that the KE increment declines, while the diabatic heating in the eyewall remains unchanged with larger static stability. The decrease in KE gain at the eyewall is associated with an enhanced outward advection of absolute angular momentum. The combined effect of enhanced water‐vapour supply and the slightly reduced updraft at the eyewall keeps the diabatic heating steady with varying static stability. This study demonstrates the complex effects of enhanced static stability, which is expected to accompany surface warming, on tropical cyclones.

Journal article

Opie S, Verscharen D, Chen CHK, Owen CJ, Isenberg PA, Sorriso-Valvo L, Franci L, Matteini Let al., 2024,

Temperature anisotropy instabilities driven by intermittent velocity shears in the solar wind

, Journal of Plasma Physics, Vol: 90, ISSN: 0022-3778

Where and under what conditions the transfer of energy between electromagnetic fields and particles takes place in the solar wind remains an open question. We investigate the conditions that promote the growth of kinetic instabilities predicted by linear theory to infer how turbulence and temperature-anisotropy-driven instabilities are interrelated. Using a large dataset from Solar Orbiter, we introduce the radial rate of strain, a novel measure computed from single-spacecraft data, which we interpret as a proxy for the double-adiabatic strain rate. The solar wind exhibits high absolute values of the radial rate of strain at locations with large temperature anisotropy. We measure the kurtosis and skewness of the radial rate of strain from the statistical moments to show that it is non-Gaussian for unstable intervals and increasingly intermittent at smaller scales with a power-law scaling. We conclude that the velocity field fluctuations in the solar wind contribute to the presence of temperature anisotropy sufficient to create potentially unstable conditions.

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Journal article

Ellmeier M, Betzler A, Amtmann C, Pollinger A, Hagen C, Jernej I, Agú M, Magnes W, Windholz L, Dougherty M, Brown P, Lammegger Ret al., 2024,

Lower magnetic field measurement limit of the coupled dark state magnetometer

, Measurement Science and Technology, Vol: 35, ISSN: 0957-0233

The Coupled Dark State Magnetometer (CDSM) is an optically pumped magnetometer. For the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer mission, the CDSM and two fluxgate magnetometers are combined in the J-MAG instrument to measure the static and low frequency magnetic field in the Jupiter system. During certain calibration manoeuvres, the CDSM has to be able to measure magnetic field strengths down to 100 nT with an accuracy of 0.2 nT ( 1 σ ). At such low magnetic fields, the CDSM’s operational parameters must be carefully selected to obtain narrow resonance structures. Otherwise, the coupled dark state resonances, used for the magnetic field detection in different instrument modes, overlap and result in a systematic error. The overlap of the resonances and therefore the systematic error mainly depends on the resonance line width and the selected modulation frequencies for the detection of the resonances. We show that a line width of less than 200 Hz and selecting a modulation frequency of about the resonance line width are beneficial at magnetic field strengths B < 1.5 μ T. In this paper we demonstrate that with the found instrument settings the CDSM is able to measure magnetic field strengths below 100 nT with a systematic error less than 0.2 nT resulting from the overlap of the resonances.

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Journal article

Ervin T, Jaffarove K, Badman ST, Huang J, Rivera YJ, Bale SDet al., 2024,

Characteristics and Source Regions of Slow Alfvénic Solar Wind Observed by Parker Solar Probe

, Astrophysical Journal, Vol: 975, ISSN: 0004-637X

Using a classification scheme for solar-wind type based on the heliocentric distance of the observation, we look at near-perihelion observations from Parker Solar Probe Encounters 4 to 14 to study the sources of the slow Alfvénic solar wind (SASW). Through Potential Field Source Surface (PFSS) modeling and ballistic mapping, we connect streams to their solar source and find that a primary population of SASW comes from low magnetic field strength regions (low-B 0), likely small coronal holes (CHs) and their overexpanded boundaries, while a second population of high field strength (high-B 0) seems to emerge from non-CH structures potentially through interchange reconnection with nearby open field lines. This low-B 0 SASW shows larger expansion than the fast solar wind (FSW) but similar mass flux, potentially indicating additional heating below the critical point, and emergence from a cooler structure, which could lead to slower wind emerging from CH-like structures. We show that this low-B 0 SASW shows stronger preferential acceleration of alpha particles (similar to the FSW) than the high-B 0 SASW, and that this is a velocity-dependent phenomenon as found in previous studies. To have additional confidence in our mapping results, we quantify the error on both the PFSS model and ballistic mapping and discuss how additional multipoint observations of plasma parameters and composition would allow us to better constrain our models and connect the solar wind to its source.

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Journal article

Chen L, Ma B, Wu D, Ning Z, Zhou X, Bale SDet al., 2024,

Spectral Characteristics of Fundamental-Harmonic Pairs of Interplanetary Type III Radio Bursts Observed by PSP

, Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol: 975, ISSN: 2041-8205

Based on the observations by the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) during its encounter phases of approaching the Sun, I. C. Jebaraj et al. found that fundamental-harmonic (F-H) pairs constitute a majority of interplanetary (IP) type III radio bursts. In the present Letter, spectral characteristics of the IP F-H pairs are identified and analyzed further. The observations were made with the Radio Frequency Spectrometer (RFS) experiment on the PSP spacecraft in its encounter phase from the first to the ninth orbit as it traveled from 0.17 to 0.074 au from the Sun. The result shows that the occurrence rate of F-H pairs rises significantly with the rise in the number of IP type III radio bursts detected by the PSP or the enhancement in the time resolution of the RFS instrument. In particular, we compare the relationship between F and H spectral characteristics, such as the frequency-drift rate, emission intensity, relative bandwidth, duration, and fine structure. The results will be helpful for us to understand the physics underlying the generation and evolution of the IP F-H pairs as well as other IP type III radio bursts.

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Journal article

Jebaraj IC, Agapitov OV, Gedalin M, Vuorinen L, Miceli M, Cohen CMS, Voshchepynets A, Kouloumvakos A, Dresing N, Marmyleva A, Krasnoselskikh V, Balikhin M, Mitchell JG, Labrador AW, Wijsen N, Palmerio E, Colomban L, Pomoell J, Kilpua EKJ, Pulupa M, Mozer FS, Raouafi NE, McComas DJ, Bale SD, Vainio Ret al., 2024,

Direct Measurements of Synchrotron-emitting Electrons at Near-Sun Shocks

, Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol: 976, ISSN: 2041-8205

In this study, we present the first-ever direct measurements of synchrotron-emitting heliospheric traveling shocks, intercepted by the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) during its close encounters. Given that much of our understanding of powerful astrophysical shocks is derived from synchrotron radiation, these observations by PSP provide an unprecedented opportunity to explore how shocks accelerate relativistic electrons and the conditions under which they emit radiation. The probe’s unparalleled capabilities to measure both electromagnetic fields and energetic particles with high precision in the near-Sun environment has allowed us to directly correlate the distribution of relativistic electrons with the resulting photon emissions. Our findings reveal that strong quasi-parallel shocks emit radiation at significantly higher intensities than quasi-perpendicular shocks due to the efficient acceleration of ultrarelativistic electrons. These experimental results are consistent with theory and recent observations of supernova remnant shocks and advance our understanding of shock physics across diverse space environments.

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Journal article

Lario D, Balmaceda LA, Gomez-Herrero R, Mason GM, Krupar V, Mac Cormack C, Kouloumvakos A, Cernuda I, Collier H, Richardson IG, Kumar P, Krucker S, Carcaboso F, Wijsen N, Strauss RD, Dresing N, Warmuth A, Rodriguez-Pacheco J, Rodriguez-Garcia L, Jebaraj IC, Ho GC, Bucik R, Pacheco D, Espinosa Lara F, Hutchinson A, Horbury TS, Rodriguez L, Janitzek NP, Zhukov AN, Aran A, Nitta NVet al., 2024,

A Rapid Sequence of Solar Energetic Particle Events Associated with a Series of Extreme-ultraviolet Jets: Solar Orbiter, STEREO-A, and Near-Earth Spacecraft Observations

, Astrophysical Journal, Vol: 975, ISSN: 0004-637X

A series of solar energetic electron (SEE) events was observed from 2022 November 9 to November 15 by Solar Orbiter, STEREO-A, and near-Earth spacecraft. At least 32 SEE intensity enhancements at energies >10 keV were clearly distinguishable in Solar Orbiter particle data, with 13 of them occurring on November 11. Several of these events were accompanied by ≲10 MeV proton and ≲2 MeV nucleon−1 heavy-ion intensity enhancements. By combining remote-sensing and in situ data from the three viewpoints (Solar Orbiter and STEREO-A were ∼20° and ∼15° east of Earth, respectively), we determine that the origin of this rapid succession of events was a series of brightenings and jetlike eruptions detected in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) observations from the vicinity of two active regions. We find a close association between these EUV phenomena, the occurrence of hard X-ray flares, type III radio bursts, and the release of SEEs. For the most intense events, usually associated with extended EUV jets, the distance between the site of these solar eruptions and the estimated magnetic connectivity regions of each spacecraft with the Sun did not prevent the arrival of electrons at the three locations. The capability of jets to drive coronal fronts does not necessarily imply the observation of an SEE event. Two peculiar SEE events on November 9 and 14, observed only at electron energies ≲50 keV but rich in ≲1 MeV nucleon−1 heavy ions, originated from slow-rising confined EUV emissions, for which the process resulting in energetic particle release to interplanetary space is unclear.

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Journal article

Bessho N, Chen LJ, Hesse M, Ng J, Wilson LB, Stawarz JE, Madanian Het al., 2024,

Electron Acceleration in Magnetic Islands in Quasi-parallel Shocks

, Astrophysical Journal, Vol: 975, ISSN: 0004-637X

We report new theories and simulations for electron acceleration in magnetic islands generated by magnetic reconnection in the shock turbulence in a quasi-parallel shock, using a 2 and 1/2 dimensional particle-in-cell simulation. When an island is moving, unmagnetized electrons are accelerated by the Hall electric field pointing toward the island center. In a stationary island, some electrons are energized by “island betatron acceleration” due to the induction electric field when the island core magnetic field changes with time. In the simulation, almost all of the high-energy electrons in the shock transition region that show a power-law distribution are accelerated in ion-skin-depth-scale magnetic flux ropes, and about half of them are accelerated by the Hall electric field and island betatron acceleration. These mechanisms can produce a power-law electron distribution, and also inject electrons into the diffusive shock acceleration. The mechanisms are applicable to quasi-parallel shocks with high Alfvén Mach numbers (M A > 10), including planetary bow shocks and shocks in astrophysical objects such as supernova remnants.

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Journal article

Blyth L, Graven H, Manning AJ, Levy Pet al., 2024,

Radiocarbon as a tracer of the fossil fraction of regional carbon monoxide emissions

, Environmental Research Letters, Vol: 19

Carbon monoxide (CO) is an atmospheric pollutant with a positive net warming effect on the climate. The magnitude of CO sources and the fraction of fossil vs biogenic sources are still uncertain and vary across emissions inventories. Measurements of radiocarbon (14C) in CO could potentially be used to investigate the sources of CO on a regional scale because fossil sources lack 14C and reduce the 14C/C ratio (Δ14C) of atmospheric CO more than biogenic sources. We use regional Lagrangian model simulations to investigate the utility of Δ14CO measurements for estimating the fossil fraction of CO emissions and evaluating bottom-up emissions estimates (United Kingdom Greenhouse Gas, UKGHG, and TNO Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, TNO) in London, UK. Due to the high Δ14CO in atmospheric CO from cosmogenic production, both fossil and biogenic CO emissions cause large reductions in Δ14CO regionally, with larger reductions for fossil than biogenic CO per ppb added. There is a strong seasonal variation in Δ14CO in background air and in the sensitivity of Δ14CO to fossil and biogenic emissions of CO. In the UK, the CO emissions estimate from TNO has a higher fraction from fossil fuels than UKGHG (72% vs 67%). This results in larger simulated decreases in Δ14C per ppb CO for TNO emissions. The simulated differences between UKGHG and TNO are likely to be easily detectable by current measurement precision, suggesting that Δ14CO measurements could be an effective tool to understand regional CO sources and assess bottom-up emissions estimates.

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Journal article

Masters A, 2024,

Solar wind power likely governs Uranus’ thermosphere temperature

, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 51, ISSN: 0094-8276

Observations of Uranus in the near-infrared by ground-based telescopes from 1992 to 2018 have shown that the planet's upper atmosphere (thermosphere) steadily cooled from ∼700 to ∼450 K. We explain this cooling as due to the concurrent decline in the power of the solar wind incident on Uranus' magnetic field, which has dropped by ∼50% over the same period due to solar activity trends longer than the 11-year solar cycle. Uranus' thermosphere appears to be more strongly governed by the solar wind than any other planet where we have assessed this coupling so far. Uranus' total auroral power may also have declined, in contrast with the power of the radio aurora that we expect has been predominantly modulated by the solar cycle. In the absence of strong local driving, planets with sufficiently large magnetospheres may also have thermospheres predominantly governed by the stellar wind, rather than stellar radiation.

Journal article

Tannous SM, Bonnell JW, Pulupa M, Bale SDet al., 2024,

Electron Temperatures in the Venusian Ionosphere From Parker Solar Probe Using Quasi-Thermal Noise Spectroscopy

, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 51, ISSN: 0094-8276

Parker Solar Probe (PSP) uses Venus gravity assists (VGA) to achieve the closest orbits to the Sun by a spacecraft. During the third (VGA3) and fourth (VGA4) Venus gravity assists, the PSP entered the Venusian ionosphere. The core electrons could not be detected as they were below the SWEAP/SPAN electrostatic analyzer instrument energy threshold. However, there is another way to estimate the core temperature using quasi-thermal noise (QTN) data measured by the PSP/FIELDS Radio Frequency Spectrometer instrument. QTN spectroscopy offers an effective tool for measuring electron temperature and density when the electrons are too cold for other instruments to measure, as is the case with VGA3 and VGA4. Low-frequency plasma wave data from the closest approach during VGA3 and VGA4 was analyzed with the QTN spectroscopy technique to determine the density and first-ever in-situ thermal electron temperature of the Venusian ionosphere at solar minimum.

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Journal article

Chakravorty S, Czaja A, Parfitt R, Dewar WKet al., 2024,

Tropospheric Response to Gulf Stream Intrinsic Variability: A Model Ensemble Approach

, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 51, ISSN: 0094-8276

The Gulf Stream's (GS) impact on the marine boundary layer (MBL) is well established, yet the mechanisms and timescales through which it affects the upper-troposphere and contributes to precipitation are debatable. Using a high-resolution regional atmospheric model, we shed light on the impact of ocean intrinsic variability (OIV) along GS on midlatitude-atmosphere. Taking advantage of a 24-member ensemble of ocean model integrations, we devised a novel experimental setup where the same weather system feels different realizations of GS sea surface temperature (SST). We introduce the “Eddy Recharge-Frontal Lift” (ERFL) mechanism, highlighting the joint importance of synoptic variability and boundary layer processes. ERFL mechanism proposes that OIV recharges/discharges MBL with moisture and heat, while convergence associated with passing atmospheric-fronts uplifts these MBL-trapped anomalies to upper-troposphere and imprints on precipitation in surprisingly short periods (a month). The impact of OIV on precipitation depends on the background mean SST.

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Ceppi P, Myers TA, Nowack P, Wall CJ, Zelinka MDet al., 2024,

Implications of a Pervasive Climate Model Bias for Low-Cloud Feedback

, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol: 51, ISSN: 0094-8276

How low clouds respond to warming constitutes a key uncertainty for climate projections. Here we observationally constrain low-cloud feedback through a controlling factor analysis based on ridge regression. We find a moderately positive global low-cloud feedback (0.45 W (Formula presented.) (Formula presented.), 90% range 0.18–0.72 W (Formula presented.) (Formula presented.)), about twice the mean value (0.22 W (Formula presented.) (Formula presented.)) of 16 models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project. We link this discrepancy to a pervasive model mean-state bias: models underestimate the low-cloud response to warming because (a) they systematically underestimate present-day tropical marine low-cloud amount, and (b) the low-cloud sensitivity to warming is proportional to this present-day low-cloud amount. Our results hence highlight the importance of reducing model biases in both the mean state of clouds and their sensitivity to environmental factors for accurate climate change projections.

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Journal article

Auestad H, Spensberger C, Marcheggiani A, Ceppi P, Spengler T, Woollings Tet al., 2024,

Spatio-temporal averaging of jets obscures the reinforcement of baroclinicity by latent heating

, Weather and Climate Dynamics, Vol: 5, Pages: 1269-1286

Latent heating modifies the jet stream by modifying the vertical geostrophic wind shear, thereby altering the potential for baroclinic development. Hence, correctly representing diabatic effects is important for modelling the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation and variability. However, the direct effects of diabatic heating remain poorly understood. For example, there is no consensus on the effect of latent heating on the cross-jet temperature contrast. We show that this disagreement is attributable to the choice of spatio-temporal averaging. Jet representations relying on averaged wind tend to have the strongest latent heating on the cold flank of the jet, thus weakening the cross-jet temperature contrast. In contrast, jet representations reflecting the two-dimensional instantaneous wind field have the strongest latent heating on the warm flank of the jet. Furthermore, we show that latent heating primarily occurs on the warm flank of poleward directed instantaneous jets, which is the case for all storm tracks and seasons.

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Journal article

Mozer FS, Agapitov O, Bale SD, Goetz K, Krasnoselskikh V, Pulupa M, Sauer K, Voshchepynets Aet al., 2024,

Origin of the type III radiation observed near the Sun

, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Vol: 690, ISSN: 0004-6361

Aims. We investigate processes associated with the generation of type III radiation using Parker Solar Probe measurements. Methods. We measured the amplitudes and phase velocities of electric and magnetic fields and their associated plasma density fluctuations. Results. 1. There are slow electrostatic waves near the Langmuir frequency and at as many as six harmonics, the number of which increases with the amplitude of the Langmuir wave. Their electrostatic nature is shown by measurements of the plasma density fluctuations. From these density fluctuations and the electric field magnitude, the k-value of the Langmuir wave is estimated to be 0.14 and kλd = 0.4. Even with the large uncertainty in this quantity (more than a factor of two), the phase velocity of the Langmuir wave was < 10 000 km/s. 2. The electromagnetic wave near the Langmuir frequency has a phase velocity lower than 50 000 km/s. 3. We cannot determine whether there are electromagnetic waves at the harmonics of the Langmuir frequency. If they existed, their magnetic field components would be below the noise level of the measurement. 4. The rapid (less than one millisecond) amplitude variations typical of the Langmuir wave and its harmonics are artifacts resulting from the addition of two waves, one of which has small frequency variations that arise because the wave travels through density irregularities. None of these results are expected in or consistent with the conventional model of the three-wave interaction of two counter-streaming Langmuir waves that coalesce to produce the type III wave. They are consistent with a new model in which electrostatic antenna waves are produced at the harmonics by radiation of the Langmuir wave, after which at least the first harmonic wave evolved through density irregularities such that its wave number decreased and it became the type III radiation.

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Journal article

Rivera YJ, Badman ST, Stevens ML, Raines JM, Owen CJ, Paulson K, Niembro T, Livi SA, Lepri ST, Landi E, Halekas JS, Ervin T, Dewey RM, Coburn JT, Bale SD, Alterman BLet al., 2024,

Mixed Source Region Signatures inside Magnetic Switchback Patches Inferred by Heavy Ion Diagnostics

, Astrophysical Journal, Vol: 974, ISSN: 0004-637X

Since Parker Solar Probe’s (Parker’s) first perihelion pass at the Sun, large-amplitude Alfvén waves grouped in patches have been observed near the Sun throughout the mission. Several formation processes for these magnetic switchback patches have been suggested with no definitive consensus. To provide insight into their formation, we examine the heavy ion properties of several adjacent magnetic switchback patches around Parker’s 11th perihelion pass, capitalizing on a spacecraft lineup with Solar Orbiter where each samples the same solar wind streams over a large range of longitudes. Heavy ion properties (Fe/O, C6+/C5+, O7+/O6+) related to the wind’s coronal origin, measured with Solar Orbiter, can be linked to switchback patch structures identified near the Sun with Parker. We find that switchback patches do not contain distinctive ion and elemental compositional signatures different from the surrounding nonswitchback solar wind. Both the patches and ambient wind exhibit a range of fast and slow wind qualities, indicating coronal sources with open and closed field lines in close proximity. These observations and modeling indicate switchback patches form in coronal hole boundary wind and with a range of source region magnetic and thermal properties. Furthermore, the heavy ion signatures suggest interchange reconnection and/or shear-driven processes may play a role in their creation.

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Journal article

Cuesta ME, Cummings AT, Livadiotis G, McComas DJ, Cohen CMS, Khoo LY, Sharma T, Shen MM, Bandyopadhyay R, Rankin JS, Szalay JR, Farooki HA, Xu Z, Muro GD, Stevens ML, Bale SDet al., 2024,

Observations of Kappa Distributions in Solar Energetic Protons and Derived Thermodynamic Properties

, Astrophysical Journal, Vol: 973, ISSN: 0004-637X

In this paper, we model the high-energy tail of observed solar energetic proton energy distributions with a kappa distribution function. We employ a technique for deriving the thermodynamic parameters of solar energetic proton populations measured by the Parker Solar Probe Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun EPI-Hi high-energy telescope, over energies from 10 to 60 MeV. With this technique, we explore, for the first time, the characteristic thermodynamic properties of the solar energetic protons associated with an interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) and its driven shock. We find that: (1) the spectral index or, equivalently, the thermodynamic parameter kappa of solar energetic protons (κ EP) gradually increases, starting from the pre-ICME region (upstream of the CME-driven shock), reaching a maximum in the CME ejecta (κ EP ≈ 3.5), followed by a gradual decrease throughout the trailing portion of the CME; (2) the solar energetic proton temperature and density (T EP and n EP) appear anticorrelated, a behavior consistent with subisothermal polytropic processes; and (3) values of T EP and κ EP appear to be positively correlated, indicating an increasing entropy with time. Therefore, these proton populations are characterized by a complex and evolving thermodynamic behavior, consisting of multiple subisothermal polytropic processes, and a large-scale trend of increasing temperature, kappa, and entropy. This study and its companion study by Livadiotis et al. open up a new set of procedures for investigating the thermodynamic behavior of energetic particles and their shared thermal properties.

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Journal article

Quaas J, Andrews T, Bellouin N, Block K, Boucher O, Ceppi P, Dagan G, Doktorowski S, Eichholz HM, Forster P, Goren T, Gryspeerdt E, Hodnebrog Ø, Jia H, Kramer R, Lange C, Maycock AC, Mülmenstädt J, Myhre G, OConnor FM, Pincus R, Samset BH, Senf F, Shine KP, Smith C, Stjern CW, Takemura T, Toll V, Wall CJet al., 2024,

Adjustments to climate perturbations—mechanisms, implications, observational constraints

, AGU Advances, Vol: 5, ISSN: 2576-604X

Since the 5th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (AR5) an extended concept of the energetic analysis of climate change including forcings, feedbacks and adjustment processes has become widely adopted. Adjustments are defined as processes that occur in response to the introduction of a climate forcing agent, but that are independent of global-mean surface temperature changes. Most considered are the adjustments that impact the Earth energy budget and strengthen or weaken the instantaneous radiative forcing due to the forcing agent. Some adjustment mechanisms also impact other aspects of climate not related to the Earth radiation budget. Since AR5 and a following description by Sherwood et al. (2015, https://doi.org/10.1175/bams-d-13-00167.1), much research on adjustments has been performed and is reviewed here. We classify the adjustment mechanisms into six main categories, and discuss methods of quantifying these adjustments in terms of their potentials, shortcomings and practicality. We furthermore describe aspects of adjustments that act beyond the energetic framework, and we propose new ideas to observe adjustments or to make use of observations to constrain their representation in models. Altogether, the problem of adjustments is now on a robust scientific footing, and better quantification and observational constraint is possible. This allows for improvements in understanding and quantifying climate change.

Journal article

Murray-Watson R, Gryspeerdt E, 2024,

Air mass history linked to the development of Arctic mixed-phase clouds

, Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Vol: 24, Pages: 11115-11132, ISSN: 1680-7316

Clouds formed during marine cold-air outbreaks (MCAOs) exhibit a distinct transition from stratocumulus decks near the ice edge to broken cumuliform fields further downwind. The mechanisms associated with ice formation are believed to be crucial in driving this transition, yet the factors influencing such formation remain unclear. Through Lagrangian trajectories collocated with satellite data, this study investigates the development of mixed-phase clouds using these outbreaks. Cloud formed in MCAOs are characterized by a swift shift from liquid to ice-containing states, contrasting with non-MCAO clouds also moving off the ice edge. These mixed-phase clouds are predominantly observed at temperatures below −20 °C near the ice edge. However, further into the outbreak, they become dominant at temperatures as high as −13 °C. This shift is consistent with the influence of biological ice-nucleating particles (INPs), which become more prevalent as the air mass ages over the ocean. The evolution of these clouds is closely linked to the history of the air mass, especially the length of time it spends over snow- and ice-covered surfaces – terrains may that be deficient in INPs. This connection also accounts for the observed seasonal variations in the development of Arctic clouds, both within and outside of MCAO events. The findings highlight the importance of understanding both local marine aerosol sources near the ice edge and the overarching INP distribution in the Arctic for modelling of cloud phase in the region.

Journal article

Waters C, Eastwood J, Fargette N, Newman D, Goldman Met al., 2024,

Classifying magnetic reconnection regions using k-means clustering: applications to energy partition

, JGR: Space Physics, Vol: 129, ISSN: 2169-9402

Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental plasma process which facilitates the conversion of magnetic energy to particle energies. This local process both contributes to and is affected by a larger system, being dependent on plasma conditions and transporting energy around the system, such as Earth's magnetosphere. When studying the reconnection process with in situ spacecraft data, it can be difficult to determine where spacecraft are in relation to the reconnection structure. In this work, we use k-means clustering, an unsupervised machine learning technique, to identify regions in a 2.5-D PIC simulation of symmetric magnetic reconnection with conditions comparable to those observed in Earth’s magnetotail. This allows energy flux densities to be attributed to these regions. The ion enthalpy flux density is the most dominant form of energy flux density in the outflows, agreeing with previous studies. Poynting flux density may be dominant at some points in the outflows and is only half that of the Poynting flux density in the separatrices. The proportion of outflowing particle energy flux decreases as guide field increases. We find that k-means is beneficial for analysing data and comparing between simulations and in situ data. This demonstrates an approach which may be applied to large volumes of data to determine statistically different regions within phenomena in simulations and could be extended to in situ observations, applicable to future multi-point missions.

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Enhanced precipitation of energetic protons due to Uranus' asymmetric magnetic field

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