Wildfires spark new research in the Aerosol Interdisciplinary Research Group’s lab, AIR Lab, at Washington University in St. Louis. Principal Investigator Rajan Chakrabarty is igniting new areas of study after his “wildfire chasing” in the western U.S. in 2019.
His team discovered how stealthy dark brown carbon particles in wildfires probably result in much more climate warming than previously recognized. The discoveries turned Chakrabarty’s attention to the stratosphere.
“Once emitted into the stratosphere, the particles can cause enhanced warming in the stratosphere. The lifetime of these particles is up to six months,” he said.
Now, aerosols for potential stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) are tested in Chakrabarty’s lab with a $1.5 million grant from the Simons Foundation International. The team is interested in the idea of arming the stratosphere with particles that reflect light, for a cooling effect.
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