A NEW project will develop sensors to better understand and reduce the climate impact of condensation trails from air travel.
The University of Reading is joining Honeywell and Boeing to create the prototype sensors to measure atmospheric conditions in flight, which will help improve forecasting of when and where contrails form, and support efforts to avoid them.
Honeywell will lead the work, designing and integrating the sensor hardware using its facilities in Yeovil, while Boeing will provide expertise on fitting the sensors to aircraft and testing them in real flying conditions.
Then the University of Reading’s Department of Meteorology will analyse the data and model contrail formation
The project represents a continuation of the university’s research on aviation’s climate impacts which spans more than 30 years.
Contrails–the long trails left in the sky behind aeroplanes–contribute to aviation’s climate impact beyond emissions of carbon dioxide.
As streams of water and carbon dioxide left from aeroplane engine exhausts, contrails not only deposit chemical byproducts into the atmosphere, but they also trap outgoing radiation emitted by the planet within the atmosphere.
However, current aircraft sensors don’t measure the humidity and temperature conditions accurately and often enough to determine whether contrails form and last long enough to have a climate impact.
The new sensor aims to provide better quality measurements that can be widely adopted across airline fleets.
This data will improve weather forecasts and help airlines avoid flying conditions that create persistent contrails.
The project is funded by the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) and Innovate UK
Professor Nicolas Bellouin, Professor of Climate Processes, University of Reading: “Frequent, high-quality measurements of humidity are crucial for calculating the climate impact of flights and one day reduce that impact.
“The University of Reading will study how better sensors and an optimised use of aircraft equipped with those sensors allow better contrail predictions, which will be a critical component of future contrail mitigation actions.”
Anthony Florian, President of Honeywell Aerospace EMEAI, said: “There’s a clear need for more accurate atmospheric data collected during flights.
“By improving aircraft-based sensing, this project aims to close critical data gaps that affect contrail forecasting, weather modelling and climate analysis.”
Dr Tia Benson Tolle, Boeing Commercial Airplanes Product Development Sustainability Director, said: “Aircraft already collect meteorological data on winds, temperature, icing and turbulence to support flight operations.
“We’re excited to work with ATI, Honeywell and the University of Reading on a new water vapour sensor, as humidity observations are essential to improve weather and contrail forecasting.”
