Bristol researchers to gauge extent of global warming on the UK
Scientists at the University of Bristol’s Atmospheric Chemistry Research Group (ACRG), have been commissioned by the Government to check on the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions.
The project, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), aims to provide an independent check on current estimates.
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Greenhouse gases will be measured from a number of telecommunications towers including the Tacolneston Tower, Norfolk
The UK is required to estimate how much climate-warming carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide it emits each year. However, at the moment, these estimates rely heavily on so-called ‘bottom-up’ accounting methods that may be subject to biases and inaccuracies.
The GAUGE project (Greenhouse Gas UK and Global Emissions) is a three-and-a-half year project, led by Bristol University’s Professor Simon O’Doherty.
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He said: “It’s important that we expand our greenhouse gas observation capabilities in this country, if we’re really going to understand what we’re emitting. But it’s equally important that we begin exploring new types of measurement, which may help us understand emissions processes more fundamentally.”
The project will determine emissions using information from satellites, aircraft, tall towers (including the BT tower in the middle of London), balloons and boats.
In addition to developing new measurements, GAUGE will use computer models to simulate how greenhouse gases travel through the air.
Dr Matt Rigby, a research fellow at ACRG, said: "By measuring the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and then using computer models to simulate where the air came from in the days before the measurements, we can determine emissions from the surrounding areas.”
Using the new measurements and modelling techniques, GAUGE researchers hope to make the UK’s emissions among the best-quantified in the world.
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