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Andreas Massling, PhD, Senior Scientist has received a grant from the Danish Energy Agency, Danish Ministry for Energy and Climate, on 0.5 million DKK for a 2,5 years study on  ‘Meteorological and pollutant observations in the High Arctic’ (METAPOL).

The Arctic is under high pressure as the area is warming with more than twice the rate compared to the global average. Short-lived climate forcers as methane (CH4), ozone (O3) and atmospheric particles together with greenhouse gasses are suggested to be a major player in the Arctic with respect to the observed climate changes.

These components all have a major anthropogenic source outside the Arctic. However, formation or emissions of specific compounds from natural sources have also been observed in the Arctic as e.g. the formation of atmospheric particles (Nguyen, 2013). Thus, a detailed understanding of the respective climate forcers is needed to provide improved understanding of the climate changes in the Arctic and to formulate mitigation strategies.

The information is urgently needed to advise the Danish and the international political system in general (e.g. Arctic council).

This project focusses on the monitoring of climate-relevant parameters as in this case the scattering potential of the ambient aerosol population at Villum Research Station (VRS), Station Nord (SN), North Greenland. The data will be of high relevance to better quantity the contribution of the direct aerosol effect in the high Arctic.

Additionally, the monitoring of climate changes is also important as the number of such data is limited by the low spatial coverage of climate data in this harsh and remote environment. Therefore, we propose to quality control and evaluate in total four years of relevant atmospheric data from a meteorological tower at VRS which can then be used for future climate monitoring and validation of satellite products and model outputs. We will also ensure the future operation of the meteorological tower at a high quality level.  

For further information please contact Andreas Massling at anma@envs.au.dk.