Sustainability and Environment
New Tool Helps Aviation Cut Climate Impact
Reducing contrails may outweigh small CO2 increases, according to researchers at UC Irvine
Jet plane with contrail
With conventional jet fuel expected to be a driving force in aviation for the coming decades, EASA and European industry stakeholders are examining how changes in its formulation could help mitigate non-CO2 emissions environmental impacts. © Nigel Moll

Researchers at the University of California Irvine have created a tool that could help the aviation industry reduce its climate impact by mitigating contrails. According to study published by university researchers, mitigating emissions such as contrails and nitrogen oxides may have greater long-term benefits, even if carbon dioxide output rises slightly as a result.

“We have always tried to build uncertainty quantification into our climate assessments,” said Michael Prather, professor of earth system science at UC Irvine. “But this new decision tool uses the information to provide accurate risk quantification for climate tradeoff decisions.”