Vienna, 22^nd to 23^rd April 2023

TUtheSky, Getreidemarkt 9/BC, 1060 Vienna, Austria

Dear Colleagues,

It is my pleasure to invite you to Vienna to the 7^th Pre-EGU Workshop. This time we will combine Ice Nucleation and Bioaerosol Research. It is our aim to bring together the two different communities of research. The joint topic is the understanding and application of the biome of the atmosphere and its impact on ice nucleation. We will focus on recent observations and open questions concerning biological particles and ice in the atmosphere discussing experimental and theoretical approaches and applications including chemistry, microphysics and engineering.

The development of a detailed understanding of biological particles in the atmosphere relies on the combined use of field studies, modelling at a multitude of scales, and laboratory studies that provide the necessary fundamentals. Biological aerosols can be studied by remote sensing methods from the ground, from airplanes and even from satellites, or in situ from airborne platforms such as aircraft and balloons. While such observations are essential, the various methods often lack sufficient access to fundamental physical, chemical and/or biological parameters. On the other hand, laboratory studies are usually aimed at understanding the fundamentals of the underlying processes such as the details of the biochemistry, because they can be performed under well controlled conditions. Hence, under these controlled conditions the impact of individual parameters on the formation and transformation processes can be determined. Theoretical and numerical models are then required to transfer the knowledge from laboratory to field studies and into applications. Moreover, the influence and impact of the nature of pre-existing aerosol particles on aerobiome generation, microstructure of bioparticles and cloud formation by bioaerosols are some of the least understood parameters. The knowledge of physicists, chemists, and biologists about the bioaerosol composition has to be combined with the transport models of meteorologists and the technical approaches of engineers to gain a better understanding of the whole spectrum of bioaerosol applications. For these reasons it seems viable for progress in this area to bring together scientists from various (sub-) disciplines and foster discussions between them.

Given the importance of understanding the atmospheric ice nucleation process for various atmospheric applications, e.g. the modelling precipitation and for a representation of clouds in climate models, we believe the topic of the workshop “Ice nucleation & Bioaerosols” is of high scientific interest for scientists from various disciplines such as meteorology, chemistry, physics, biology, and engineering. A workshop provides an ideal platform for more detailed and, thus, deeper interaction between the different communities and provides the opportunity to bring together scientists from the different fields of bioaerosol research. Moreover, in contrast to a regular session at the EGU General Assembly with a rapid sequence of contributed talks, the workshop will provide more time for discussion. This may help abolishing uncertainties and prejudices existing between scientists from different disciplines, in particular for PhD students and postdocs who represent the next generation of scientists.

Vienna 28th November 2022

Hinrich Grothe