Richard Wilson’s Post

Definitely an interesting insight on emissions in high-altitude, that could be leading to even worse effects. Transport & Environment (T&E) super post!

A new study by Imperial College London has found that higher flying aircraft create longer lasting contrails and thus likely more warming. However, long-haul flights, which usually operate at higher altitudes, have been excluded from the scope of the EU non-CO2 emissions monitoring mechanism, overlooking two thirds of aviation’s contrail climate impact. T&E calls upon the EU Commission to listen to the growing number of arguments underlying the need to reverse to the original full scope agreed by co-legislators. The IC study has also confirmed the link between jet fuel composition and contrail climate impact, showing SAFs, and while their production is being scaled up, jet fuels that are high quality, low-aromatic and low-sulfur, such as those created through hydrotreatment, are crucial. See our comments and the whole story in @newscientist 👇 👇 https://lnkd.in/egVtkr9k

Important new research from Imperial College London showing the need for systems thinking as we move towards sustainable aviation. Whilst newer aircraft are more fuel-efficient, they may create longer-lasting contrails that contribute significantly to global warming. Understanding these complex interactions is necessary to fully enable the pathway to green aviation. The study also highlights that private jets have a more significant climate impact than previously realised. Grantham Institute - Climate Change and the Environment Read more here:  https://avbc.me/s71CQvfN

On Earth Day it is crucially important that the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) raise awareness of making aviation more sustainable. The Society continues to work tirelessly to make aviation more sustainable and to achieve industry global Net Zero targets by 2050 and our Greener by Design Specialist Group are at the core of that work, having published two papers to help promote the need for a more sustainable industry. The RAeS Contrails and Contrail Management Paper aims to raise awareness of contrails, defining what they are and the impact they have on aviation’s effective radiative forcing. Currently contrails and contrail cirrus are responsible for half of aviation’s effective radiative forcing. https://lnkd.in/eUFQR99v In addition, the Greener By Design Annual Report, covers the major activity of the group over the past year. The group meets regularly, mainly virtually, to consider activities to promote a greener future for aviation. This includes activities in technology and operations. https://lnkd.in/eyDY-d6k The importance of non-CO2 emissions such as NOx and contrails has become evident and there is a focus on our ‘Change’ conference last year as well as on contrails and contrail management offering potential for reduced global warming in the short term. Questions can be sent to press@aerosociety.com #EarthDay

💭 What is a #contrail? Aviation’s #ClimateImpact is not just limited to CO2: aviation’s non-CO2 climate warming impacts include emissions such as nitrogen oxides, stratospheric water vapour and particulate matter, and the formation of persistent contrails. ✏ Our report calls on aviation leaders to establish ‘Airspace-wide Living Labs’ by the end of 2025 to address uncertainties in contrail avoidance, which could reduce the #climate impact of #aviation by up to 40%. Watch below as Whittle Laboratory Director, Prof. Rob Miller, discusses the warming impact of persistent #contrails & the 2030 Goals. Read about the AIA's 2030 Sustainable Aviation Goals at report.aiazero.org

Aviation Insights #7 Article: The importance of an informed choice of CO2-equivalence metrics for contrail avoidance Authors: Audran Borella, Olivier Boucher, Keith P. Shine, Marc Stettler, Katsumasa Tanaka, Roger Teoh, and Nicolas Bellouin Published Year: 2024 DOI: https://lnkd.in/eEwuxf65 ✈️ Some interesting points in this article are: 💡 The researchers first analyzed how current flight paths would impact global warming. They projected that CO₂ emissions and contrails from these flights would increase temperatures by about 17 microKelvins (μK) by 2039, and 14 μK by 2119. 💡 They then considered a scenario where planes could avoid all contrails by using just 1% more fuel. This would significantly reduce warming, lowering it by 5 μK (29% less) by 2039 and by 2 μK (14% less) by 2119. 💡 Rerouting can lead to 47% of potential climate benefits by targeting 9.1% of flights responsible for the most impactful contrails. 💡 Contrail warming is 23 times greater than cooling contrails, and 80% of contrail-forming flights lead to positive climate forcing. These findings emphasize that contrail avoidance could significantly reduce aviation's climate impact, though CO₂ metrics and uncertainties should be considered in decision-making. #ContrailAvoidance #ClimateImpact #AviationSustainability #CarbonEmissions #GlobalWarming #SustainableAviation #FlightRerouting

#Contrails, what they are and what we can do about them. There are more ways we can reduce aviation's #climateimpact in the AIA's 2030 Sustainable Aviation Goals at report.aiazero.org.

Interesting new blog from one of our sustainable aviation team - Denis Bilyarski - exploring how the complex issues around non-CO2 climate effects such as warming caused by condensation trails, or “contrails”, is becoming an important consideration for the aviation industry. Understanding both the science and the policy responses will prove crucial in navigating this evolving area of aviation and climate https://bit.ly/4dT31et #ThisisICF #Sustainableaviation #Contrails

Contrails (condensation trails) - Contrails or condensation trails are created when ice crystals form around tiny particles of #carbon emitted by a plane’s engines when they fly through layers of humidity - Depending on the atmospheric conditions, they can hang around for between a few minutes and 18 hours - Research has shown contrails may play a significant role in the #climate impact of #aviation: * Contrails have been shown to disrupt the balance between the sun’s incoming solar radiation and the heat being emitted from the #earth’s surface, trapping heat in the atmosphere * One study from 2023 found they could be responsible for 57% of the #aviation industry’s warming impact - more than the #co2emissions from burning fuel * Another from 2019 predicts almost triple the "radiative forces" from contrails by 2050 - Solutions to the problem do exist: * #cleanfuels reduce the amount of non-#co2 pollutants released into the air * Aircraft can also avoid flying through areas with very cold and humid conditions, changing flight paths to lower altitudes or performing small diversions * For example, rerouting less than 2% of flights in Japan could reduce the warming effect of contrails by 60%, according to one study - But to work out what areas need to be avoided, airlines need to cooperate and ensure the data they collect on flight routes is available - New #eu regulations will require airlines to measure and report non-#co2 #emissions from flights from Jan-25 https://lnkd.in/gUtHQNeK #climatecrisis

Tweaking the routes of just a few flights could halve contrail warming by 2040 — and would cost passengers less than €4 per ticket, a new study by research group Transport & Environment (T&E) finds. Contrails — the white lines in the sky created when planes fly through cold, humid air — make up a significant share of the aviation sector’s contribution to climate change. In most cases, they dissipate within a few minutes; but in certain parts of the world where atmospheric conditions allow, they can persist and become artificial cirrus clouds with a net warming effect. Just 3% of all flights generate 80% of all contrail warming. T&E’s study says slightly rerouting these flights to avoid contrail hotspots would be a cheap and easy solution. https://lnkd.in/dq2qkFhn