Causal inference in satellite data studies of aerosol-cloud interactions

Project

In this project we will develop new causal discovery techniques to isolate aerosol effects on clouds and climate in the presence of multiple confounding factors that lead to spurious correlations between observable aerosol properties and the relevant response of cloud/climate parameters. For example, aerosol extinction is heavily influenced by atmospheric humidity but so are clouds.

The causal hypotheses derived from satellite data will be evaluated and tested with large-domain high-resolution simulations of aerosols, clouds and their interactions. The derived causal relationships will provide robust constraints on the representation of aerosol-cloud interactions in global climate models.

Supervisors

Philip Stier (supervisor), Jakob Runge (co-supervisor), Sebastian Carl (GAF AG, non-academic advisor)

Secondments

3 months at DLR &  3 months at GAF AG 

Enrolment in Doctoral degree

PhD in Physics at University of Oxford