Atmospheric aerosol research at Berkeley Lab seeks to understand the air quality and climate impacts of particles in the atmosphere. On going research topics include:

• The impact of black carbon on the albedo and melting of snow and ice in laboratory and field measurements
• Indoor air quality and climate impacts of improved cookstove technology in developing regions
• The effect of aerosol mixing state on aerosol single scattering albedo and black carbon absorption cross-section
• Evaluation of black carbon and aerosol light-absorption measurement techniques
• Trends in pollutant emissions from gasoline and diesel powered motor vehicles, and changes in response to emission control technologies and fuel reformulation
• Historical trends in black carbon concentrations in the atmosphere inferred from proxy data