Rosalie Shepherd's Report

Thanks to funding received from Royal Holloway Travel Grant committee I was able to attend the 22nd European Aerosol Conference (EAC) held in Tours, France to present work on the development of sulfuric acid films on mineral aerosol.

Atmospheric aerosol has a crucial role in contributing to global temperatures owing to aerosols ability to either scatter or absorb incoming solar radiation directly, or indirectly through their role as cloud condensation nuclei. To further our current understanding of the role of atmospheric aerosol in contributing to global climate, my PhD focuses on the reaction chemistry of atmospheric aerosols and cloud droplets. More specifically, I am interested in how the presence of films on an aerosol or cloud droplet alters the radiation scattering ability and absorption parameter of the particle or droplet. Application of optical trapping and neutron or x-ray scattering techniques at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) help me find these answers.

EAC provides a base for scientists specialising in aerosols to meet and discuss their work; to cover the broad theme of aerosols EAC split aerosol research into five broad topics. EAC had a specific theme on the optical properties of atmospheric aerosol, which is a theme highly relevant to my work. Presenting the talk in the session resulted in my talk reaching the correct audience and consequently the resulting discussion was exceptionally insightful, addressing questions I had not perceived when working in the laboratory at RAL. Owing to the study presented being near completion, the feedback received will be extremely beneficial when drafting the paper.

The high attendance at EAC attracts groups from as far as Taiwan, USA and Australia and therefore I was able to attend sessions presented by global-experts in the field. Participating in such assemblies demonstrated the breadth of aerosol research currently occurring and helped broaden my own perspective on aerosol research avenues. Attending sessions such as Physical and Chemical Properties of Atmospheric Aerosols and Aerosols and Cloud and Climate highlighted possible routes for my own research and how to harmonise my own findings with other areas of atmospheric aerosol research.

Attending EAC was a fantastic opportunity, I was able to catch up with friends met at previous aerosol courses, meet with peers and professionals in similar research fields and forge connections important for the future. I would like to thank the Royal Holloway travel Grant committee for giving me the grant, I am hugely grateful to have been given the opportunity to attend EAC.