What is the science behind contrail cirrus and its environmental impact?

[POSContrailRF]

'HI, I'm Matt :)

I'm unsure if I'm in the right place to be asking contrail-cirrus related questions and about the science behind it as I've had no science-based education since high-school [I'm 35].

I have had a keen interest and passion wanting to learn and understand all of the sciences behind and related to contrails.

I 'tackled' my first scientific peer-reviewed paper some years ago titled "Environmental conditions required for contrail formation and persistence"; as you could imagine, by the 16th word into the abstract I was googling 'in situ'.

It's been 5-6 years of making my way through related papers introducing new concepts and linking different disciplines together; reading the papers and seeing the science evolve and deepen in understanding is fascinating. I have collected many papers and still feel I'm only at the tip of the iceberg, I have a few queries and theories I feel that if I had answered, explained to me, or a point in the right direction may help me tie up a few confusing, loose ends.

Thanks,

Matt

 

[POSContrailRF]

I'm getting my head around this paper/monograph at the moment that I find highly intriguing and motivational.
"On the Life Cycle of Individual Contrails and Contrail Cirrus"

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Welcome to PF Matt!

 

[berkeman]

'HI, I'm Matt :)

I'm unsure if I'm in the right place to be asking contrail-cirrus related questions and about the science behind it as I've had no science-based education since high-school [I'm 35].

I have had a keen interest and passion wanting to learn and understand all of the sciences behind and related to contrails.

I 'tackled' my first scientific peer-reviewed paper some years ago titled "Environmental conditions required for contrail formation and persistence"; as you could imagine, by the 16th word into the abstract I was googling 'in situ'.

It's been 5-6 years of making my way through related papers introducing new concepts and linking different disciplines together; reading the papers and seeing the science evolve and deepen in understanding is fascinating. I have collected many papers and still feel I'm only at the tip of the iceberg, I have a few queries and theories I feel that if I had answered, explained to me, or a point in the right direction may help me tie up a few confusing, loose ends.

Thanks,

Matt

Welcome to the PF, Matt.

I've moved your thread from the New Member Introductions forum to the Earth forum for now. Also, please keep in mind that we don't generally allow discussions of personal theories here, so please keep that in mind as you frame your questions. Thanks!

 

[berkeman]

BTW, the papers you linked to appear to have pretty good information in them. If you can ask specific questions about the parts that are hard for you figure out, that will help us to address your overall questions.

Here is a nice photo of a contrail over high clouds that I took on a recent noontime run. It took me a few moments to figure out that it was a contrail causing the shadow on the clouds...

 

[POSContrailRF]

Welcome to PF Matt!

Thank you :) I look forward to formulating some questions! cheers

 

[POSContrailRF]

Welcome to the PF, Matt.

I've moved your thread from the New Member Introductions forum to the Earth forum for now. Also, please keep in mind that we don't generally allow discussions of personal theories here, so please keep that in mind as you frame your questions. Thanks!

Hey berkeman, thanks for the advice ;)

 

[POSContrailRF]

BTW, the papers you linked to appear to have pretty good information in them. If you can ask specific questions about the parts that are hard for you figure out, that will help us to address your overall questions.

Here is a nice photo of a contrail over high clouds that I took on a recent noontime run. It took me a few moments to figure out that it was a contrail causing the shadow on the clouds...

View attachment 219117

Contrail shadows have always been an area of fascination for me, absolutely mind-blowing; here's someone hang-gliding through a contrail shadow ;)
So interested in optical phenomena!, I've been collecting contrail shadow pictures ever since I witnessed my first!

So if I was to say ask you what you what you thought the driving force(s) explaining different "levels of darkness" or "opaqueness" observed in Contrail Shadows; using your knowledge and answering, is that considered a theory?... would 'answering' me be more like making a statement saying "...information from this peer reviewed paper says this" and linking the source considered an answer? thanks

 

[berkeman]

Contrail shadows have always been an area of fascination for me, absolutely mind-blowing; here's someone hang-gliding through a contrail shadow ;)

Yeah, that was the first time I ever noticed one. Pretty cool. BTW, in that YouTube video, you can hear the engine and propeller, I think, and the wing doesn't look like a hang glider. Maybe an ultralight aircraft instead? Doesn't change the fun factor though...

So if I was to say ask you what you what you thought the driving force(s) explaining different "levels of darkness" or "opaqueness" observed in Contrail Shadows; using your knowledge and answering, is that considered a theory?... would 'answering' me be more like making a statement saying "...information from this peer reviewed paper says this" and linking the source considered an answer? thanks

Seems like an okay question, and probably has been addressed already in the literature. The properties of water vapor and ice crystals are pretty straightforward, after all.

 

[POSContrailRF]

Yeah, that was the first time I ever noticed one. Pretty cool. BTW, in that YouTube video, you can hear the engine and propeller, I think, and the wing doesn't look like a hang glider. Maybe an ultralight aircraft instead? Doesn't change the fun factor though...

Seems like an okay question, and probably has been addressed already in the literature. The properties of water vapor and ice crystals are pretty straightforward, after all.

Ice Nuclei such as Black Carbon Soot can alter the growth of Ice Crystals, especially that of contrail cirrus ice crystals causing its surface to near complete 'splitting' of LWR off the SWR; its surface 'sheer' directing the LWR directly towards earth.