Hello from Leeds 👋 We've just hosted our Introduction to Atmospheric Science course. Thank you to everyone who came to learn and network with our experts and with like-minded peers!

Following the withdrawal of funding by UKRI-NERC, we can confirm that the FAAM Airborne Laboratory will cease operations at the end of this financial year. Our immediate priority is supporting affected staff and the wider UK atmospheric science community. ncas.ac.uk/closure-of-t...

Still trying to process FAAM's plug getting abruptly pulled today. But among many other things, I'm thinking back on the positives, of the good science we did. If I had to pick one, it'd be this, which came out of the OP3 campaign in Borneo. 🧵 acp.copernicus.org/articles/11/...

There's a lot of things I could say, but I should probably let this sink in a bit first.

Every learner today will live their entire life in a climate different from the one their parents and grandparents grew up in. Find out why climate education matters more now than ever, on World Day of Social Justice: ncas.ac.uk/turning-know... #SocialJusticeDay #WorldDayofSocialJustice

Tackling residential wood combustion "could lead to outsized improvements in air quality.” An opportunity to reduce the toll of 8,600 premature deaths each year in the US and 2,600 in the UK. My latest piece for @theguardian.com. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Needed an image depicting indoor air pollution for a presentation, so asked Microsoft Copilot to draw me something. Astounded by the scientific accuracy of this. Wouldn't even know it was AI! /s

Good news (I hope) for those of us planning to go to the International Aerosol Conference this year! (www.iac2026.cn)

This is a pretty cool statistic, seen via Facebook. Indoor cooking is one of the biggest sources of exposure to air pollution in the less developed world, and the resulting health impacts are a source of gender inequality to boot. ourworldindata.org/grapher/acce...

This is an interesting piece of work done at the Energy House over in Salford. With increased interest in indoor air quality in homes, there's a lot of talk about tradeoffs between that and energy efficiency.

That's really interesting. theconversation.com/how-romantic...

One for the academics: The UK Exposure Science conference 2026. A good interdisciplinary conference dealing with all kinds of exposure science (not just air pollution 😜). I've previously found it great for networking, particularly with people from outside your field. www.rsc.org/events/detai...

Isn’t climate change supposed to make the weather warmer? The cold conditions in early January prompted questions about the impact of climate change. We spoke to Ed and Weronika about “coldwaves” and global warming: ncas.ac.uk/what-does-cl...

There's one key detail in all of this, which is that RFK Jr. actually had a meta-analysis to point to, which is a step above simply pointing to one paper. However, that one consisted only of a screening and comparison, this (and others like it) do a proper quantitative job of analysing results.

“Many of 2025’s heat-related records are, of course, likely to be broken again soon.” We spoke to @edhawkins.org about 2025 being the UK’s warmest year on record, and about the causal chain for changes in climate. ncas.ac.uk/in-conversat...

FINAL REMINDER Are you interested in working in atmospheric science? Would you like to learn more about weather systems, air quality, and climate? Don't miss out on our Introduction to Atmospheric Science training course this February! Apply by 23 January: ncas.ac.uk/study-with-u...

It's not quite "we're all saved", but I'll take good news where I can.

I think there's probably something I can say regarding the debate concerning use cases in the future hydrogen economy. But truthfully, I just like watching things get blown up.

Diesel cars have improved a lot over the years but they are still far from perfect. The ones made before they introduced real-world testing 2019 in particular are very iffy. Incidentally, the exhaust on my car (a petrol PHEV) is on the right hand side, probably because it's Japanese.

We know that understanding the atmosphere has never mattered more. As 2025 draws to a close, we’ve been looking back at our science stories from 2025. Here's to celebrating another year of atmospheric science: ncas.ac.uk/unlocking-an...

If there's one point that needs hammering home, it's that there's no such thing as 'clean' combustion. You can have 'cleaner', but that always needs to be qualified.

PhD opportunity at the University of Manchester/NCAS. This follows on from the recent domestic solid fuel report, using the same stoves to investigate how sensitive emissions are to user behaviour. Please distribute to anyone you think might be interested. www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

I wish I could say this was unexpected, but it'd be something of a travesty if it goes ahead. Pretty much everyone in the atmospheric science community is familiar with NCAR and their work.

I like to keep politics out of my Bluesky posts, but I definitely prefer Calibri to Times New Roman. The majority of the text I read is now on screens, and modern sans serif fonts are just so much better for that.

The team at the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis have published their latest annual report. It's packed full of stats, standout achievements, and a look back over 3 decades of supporting environmental research. Thank you for everything you do for us at NCAS! 👏 ncas.ac.uk/30-years-and...

NCAS is part of a new group, the National Research Organisations, covering ass aspects of UK science.

Two weeks in the gorgeous Lake District, learning about weather observations and modelling with like-minded peers and experts - sounds interesting? Then you should check out our Atmospheric Measurement & Modelling Summer School! Apply today: ncas.ac.uk/study-with-u...

How could pollutants from aircraft change by burning sustainable aviation fuel? New research marks a major step forward in understanding how different aviation fuels change the impact of flying on air quality and the climate. Read more: ncas.ac.uk/scientists-p...

Things aren't looking very good this year. Make sure you get vaccinated, if offered. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I was involved on the periphery of this. Outdoor air pollution was considered a societal 'leveller', but given that a lot of exposure to air pollution is now in our own homes, there's a lot of questions whether there are trends we should know about regarding housing stock and socioeconomics.

The specifics of the government plan. Commitments 19-22 concern air pollution and they've moved some targets forward. For England, they're now by 2030 wanting to get PM2.5 to 10 µg m/3, PERT down 30% and ammonia emissions down 16%. www.gov.uk/government/p...

For those familiar with the scene, this shouldn't come as a shock, but STOTEN is out of Clarivate having previously been suspended. Those with a login can find it on last month's change log. It's still listed by Scopus, but then Elsevier own both, so go figure...

This'll make things interesting. For a few years now, many people have been saying that the government's target of 10 µg/m3 by 2040 wasn't ambitious enough, given most parts of the UK outside of London have by now either hit it or are close to doing so. (1/2) www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Fascinated by windstorms and their hidden history? Be part of the NCAS team at Reading, and get a chance to dig into the archives and shape the future of storm-risk science. @uor-research.bsky.social Apply by 4 January 2026: ncas.ac.uk/job-opportun...

Global regulations are having air quality benefits in ports and open oceans. @ncas-uk.bsky.social scientists used aircraft and ground measurements, with STEAM3 model predictions, to assess sulfur emissions from ships. ncas.ac.uk/major-drop-i...

Passionate about climate science & extreme weather? Join our team at Reading. Apply by 4 January 2026: @uor-research.bsky.social ncas.ac.uk/job-opportun...

Today I received an email from 'Frontiers' that asides from soliciting papers to a journal completely outside of my discipline, actually had an 'unsubscribe' link at the bottom that lead to a 'global unsubscribe' option. Today is a good day.

Piece covering the work we've done on sampling ship emissions, with a really cool photo of FAAM. I was involved in the measurements in 2019 (with a student) but not the the ones after the new controls came in. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

This is interesting. One thing this illustrates asides the fact that the inventories are probably off (not surprising because BC emissions are notoriously hard to model), is how data sparse the global south is when it comes to in situ observations.

Places are filling up fast for December's Air Quality in the 21st Century at the Royal Society of Chemistry. It's a science adventure from the work of AQEG to net zero, health gains from air pollution actions, UFP, shipping, inequalities in exposure the ULEZ and more. www.rsc.org/events/detai...

Leaving politics aside, I'm sure that when the Epstein files drop, there'll be a mad rush to see how fast people can put them through the AI summary mangle. I'm very morbidly curious to know what's going to happen, given most of the evidence is likely to be incredibly boring.

This is really interesting.

The 2025-26 UK storm season has begun, and this week marks 10 years since the first named storm. We spoke to NCAS researchers about what to expect for the new season and as the climate continues to warm. ncas.ac.uk/uk-storm-sea...

Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels are projected to rise by 1.1% in 2025 – reaching a record high, according to new research by the Global Carbon Project. Read more: ncas.ac.uk/decarbonisat...

While fresh air is good, trying to clean the air chemically is not. The atmospheric chemistry community has been saying this for a long time; the best ways of cleaning indoor air is physical removal (filters/sorbents/air exchange).

Well deserved. I was one of many aerosol scientists who sprayed their coffee over the screen when the WHO made that 'particles bigger than 5 microns can't be airborne' statement, and while many in our field fought to raise awareness, Morawska is one in particular that deserves recognition.

It’s clear that atmospheric science plays a vital role in our collective effort to tackle climate change. As #COP30 begins, check out our 4 stories of climate science in action: ncas.ac.uk/cop30-and-cl...

New PhD projects available at the Aerosol Science CDT, including one of mine (it involves burning stuff). Please pass on to those who might be interested. www.aerosol-cdt.ac.uk/2026-projects/

"We live on a planet on the brink of disaster -- This year’s State of the Climate Report warns of imminent climate chaos" by @brianmchugh.bsky.social for @yorkshirebylines.co.uk: yorkshirebylines.co.uk/news/environ...