Worldwide atmospheric measurements will determine the role of atmospheric fine particles

The Finnish Meteorological Institute in Helsinki, Finland, will host the first annual meeting of the European Integrated Project on Aerosol Cloud Climate and Air Quality Interactions, EUCAARI, headed by Academy Professor Markku Kulmala, on 19–22 November 2007. The purpose of EUCAARI is to significantly improve current knowledge of the impact of fine particles in the atmosphere on climate and air quality. The first year of the project was dedicated to developing state-of-the-art aerosol measuring equipment, establishing a global network of measuring stations, and planning. The measuring period, beginning next spring, will collect data on European air through both ground-based and airborne measurements simultaneously.

During the past year, this EU-wide research project has developed an extremely sensitive measuring device for aerosols, allowing for reliable measurements of particles less than 3 nanometres across. Such a development in measuring technology will play a key role when solving the physical and chemical questions of aerosol generation and formation, and has already enabled significant, recently-published new observations on the quantity of particles less than 3 nm in size.