Advancing Aeronautics and Aerosol research to Accelerate Climate neutral aviation (A4Climate)

Start date: 1 February 2025
End date: 31 January 2029
Value: 4.8 million euros
Partners and collaborators: DEUTSCHES ZENTRUM FUR LUFT - UND RAUMFAHRT EV DEUTSCHER WETTERDIENST DE INSTITUTUL NATIONAL DE CERCETARE-DEZVOLTARE AERORO MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSDE IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY AND MEDI UK JOHANNES GUTENBERG-UNIVERSITAT MAINZ DE JOHANN WOLFGANG GOETHE-UNIVERSITAET FRANKFURTDE THE UNIVERSITY OF READING UK FLIGHTKEYS GMBH Austria TO70 BV Netherlands ARTTIC INNOVATION GMBH DE SOPRA STERIA GROUP FR TUIfly GmbH Germany Breakthrough Energy, LLC US EUROCONTROL - EUROPEAN ORGANISATION FOR THE SAFBE EIDGENOESSISCHE TECHNISCHE HOCHSCHULE ZUERICH Switzerland
Primary investigator: Professor Benjamin Murray
External primary investigator: Professor Christiane Voigt
External co-investigators: Dr Tina Jurkat-Witschas, Dr Stefan Kaufman, Dr Daniel Sauer, Dr Simon Kirschler, Dr Andreas Marsin, Dr Mattia Righi, Dr Silke Gros, Dr Abreas Minikin, Prof Roland Potthast, Dr Stefanie Holborn, Dr Bjorn Beckman, Dr Nicolae-Sorin Vajaiac, Ms Denisa Elena Moaca, Dr Magdalena Ardelean, Dr Georgiana Denisa Grigoras, Mr Florentin Alex Vlad, Dr Johannes Schneider, Dr Marc Stettler, Dt Roger Teoh, Dr Jonathan Itcovitz, Dr Laura Tomsche, Prof Alexander Vogek, Prof Joachim Curtius, Prof Nicolas Bellouin, Ms Alejandra Martin Frias, Mr Peter Straka, Mr Waldo Jacobsen, Mrs Lise Gascard, Mr Vincent de Haes, Mr Marson Jesus, Dr Sandra Annetzberger, Dr Natascha Perera Cindy Steinmetz, Dr Thibaut Picot, Mr Christoph Todt, Dr Devaiah Nalianda, Mr Marc Shapiro, Dr Rudiger Ehrmanntraut, Prof Heini Wernli

The mitigation of aviation non-CO2 effects, in particular contrails, could cut the radiative forcing from aviation by half in the next decade. Furthermore, the European Commission requires the Monitoring, Reporting and Verification of non-CO2 forcing agents by 2027. However, large uncertainties currently prevent the implementation of dedicated mitigation measures. A4Climate directly targets the complex challenge of reducing aviation non-CO2 effects by advancing knowledge on engine particle emissions, contrails and their climate impact. Specifically, A4Climate improves weather and contrail predictions and integrates new information on contrail predictability, accuracy, climate impact and cost in a real time software. The contrail prediction tool will be validated on 400 contrail avoidance flights, thereby leveraging the consortium’s expertise in the air transport system, weather and climate research. A4Climate creates further knowledge on contrail formation in the “low-soot regime” through dedicated lab measurements and models, filling gaps towards the assessment of the climate impact of modern lean burn and future hydrogenbased propulsion systems. Ultimately, A4Climate provides unique new atmospheric data on humidity, aerosols and contrails from an exceptional campaign with a research aircraft to improve process and climate models and to investigate fuel sulfur effects on contrails and low clouds.