How AI is helping airlines mitigate the climate impact of contrails

Tue, 3 Oct 2023 19:44:57 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
https://blog.google/technology/ai/ai-airlines-contrails-climate-change/

"Contrails — the thin, white lines you sometimes see behind airplanes — have a
surprisingly large impact on our climate. The 2022 IPCC report noted that
clouds created by contrails account for roughly 35% of aviation's global
warming impact, over half the impact of the world’s jet fuel.

Contrails form when airplanes fly through layers of humidity and they can
persist as cirrus clouds for minutes or hours depending on the atmospheric
conditions. While these extra clouds can reflect sunlight back into space
during the day, they also trap large amounts of heat that would otherwise leave
the Earth’s atmosphere. This creates a net warming effect. Avoiding flying
through areas that create contrails can reduce warming. The challenge is
knowing which flight routes will create contrails."

Via Future Crunch:
<https://futurecrunch.com/good-news-endometriosis-poverty-mexico-indigenous-canada/>

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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