The Link Between Galactic Cosmic Rays and Cloud Condensation Nuclei Abundance in the Marine Atmosphere

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This effort is designed to investigate whether galactic cosmic ray (GCR) variations that result from variations in solar activity can affect low cloud properties, and if so, to elucidate the physical mechanism and the magnitude of such effects. Distinct correlations between GCR intensity and average global coverage of low-level clouds have recently been reported. The P.I. will utilize a basic aerosol microphysics model constrained by data from recent field programs such as the Aerosol Characterization Experiments (ACE), and the TRACE-P (Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific) to test several hypotheses for explaining the link between GCR and cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) in the atmosphere. The P.I. will investigate classical binary and ternary nucleation theories as well as his own ion-mediated nucleation (IMN) hypothesis.