Objective
The intensity of solar ultraviolet radiation may have intensified in Northern Europe due the negative trend in stratospheric ozone and due to unusually low ozone columns detected in 1992-95 over Europe. The snowcover intensifies the UV-B radiation in the Arctic. The UV-B radiation may have harmful effects on European forest industry, European fishing industry, agriculture, materials and on human health. The effects of UV-B radiation can not be studied without quantitative understanding of atmospheric radiative transfer processes or without knowledge of the past and future changes of the UV-B irradiance. The UVRAPPF project is designed to solve this problem.
The UVRAPPF project contains following research tasks:
1. Past changes in solar UV-B radiation in Northern Europe
2. Processes affecting UV-B radiation in Northern Europe
3. Parametrization of radiative transfer models
4. Development of UV-B scenarios
Task 1 will be realised by using up to 20 year time-series quality-controlled o broadband UVB measurements, up to 45 years of total ozone measurements, other radiation measurements and radiative transfer models.
Task 2 will be realised by studying several years of routine, quality-controlle spectral UV measurements performed at 8 stations in Northern Europe. The vertical distribution of ozone, aerosols and meteorological parameters, records of total 03, SO2 and NO2, measurements of solar radiation, clouds and albedo, performed for several years at the stations will be used for studying the effect of various factors in affecting UV-B irradiance. These processes wil be partly studied with DISORT and WSPEC radiate transfer models. The results of these studies will further be used for improving the parametrization on the radiative transfer models. Finally, UV-B scenarios for the next century for Europe will be produced by using the newest stratospheric ozone scenarios, as produced by the leading stratospheric chemistry/dynamics modelling groups. The UVRAPPF project will be realised as a joint effort of leading UV scientists of Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Poland. Special emphasis has been paid on the quality control of UV records at the stations selected for the UVRAPPF project.
The UVRAPPF proposal has been coordinated with the proposals by other European UV groups to avoid overlapping. Open UVRAPPF workshops will be organized for European UV scientists once a year. The UV-B trends, scenarios, UV-datasets and an improved UV model will be made available on a Unix/Internet database for European scientists studying atmospheric processes and the health, biospheric etc. effects of UV-B radiation.
The results of the UVRAPPF project will help in estimating the effects of UV-B radiation on various factors of economical and social importance. It will also increase the standard of European UV research and co-operation at the European level.
Fields of science
- agricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesfisheries
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesinternet
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesdatabases
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesmeteorologysolar radiation
- agricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesagriculture
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
00101 Helsinki
Finland