Environmental Events and Atmospheric Monitoring

The Earth's atmosphere is composed of distinct layers, each characterized by variations in temperature and composition. Our research focuses primarily on the troposphere—the lowest and most active layer—where weather systems develop and where human activities have the most immediate impact. From severe weather events like thunderstorms and tornadoes to industrial emissions, mining, and military activities, both natural and anthropogenic processes influence atmospheric dynamics, climate, and ecosystems.

The NIEP atmospheric research group investigates these phenomena through an integrated, multi-sensor approach. By combining data from seismic networks, infrasound arrays, satellite remote sensing, GPS/GNSS-based water vapor measurements, ground-based aerosol profiling, radionuclide detection, and greenhouse gas monitoring systems, we aim to better understand the evolving state of the atmosphere, extreme events, and its broader environmental implications.

Our goal is to advance scientific knowledge, support climate resilience, and contribute to early warning systems through cutting-edge research and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Extreme Events

Detecting and monitoring of severe weather events such as tornadoes or storms requires a combination of advanced technologies to capture their complex behavior.

Infrasound sensors, which detect low-frequency sound waves generated by powerful storms, provide information even when traditional radar systems face limitations. At the same time, satellite-based lightning detection systems offer a broader view, capturing the intense electrical activity associated with severe weather.

By integrating infrasound data with satellite observations, these events can be tracked more accurately, identify early warning signs, and improve forecasting models.

We are using the flashes from the EUMETSAT ©MTG Lightning Imager - L2 Lightning Flashes product, and infrasound detections processed with InfraPy.

GHG and Aerosol Observational Data

Aerosols—micronic particles suspended in the atmosphere—play a crucial role in weather, climate, and air quality. Understanding their vertical distribution is essential for studying processes such as cloud formation, atmospheric scattering, and pollutant transport. Ceilometers, which measure the backscatter of laser pulses from aerosol layers, provide continuous, near-real-time observations of atmospheric profiles, including the evolution of the planetary boundary layer. Microlidars, with their higher resolution, can distinguish between different aerosol layers and detect atmospheric stratifications. Together, these technologies offer detailed insights into aerosol concentrations and layering, enhancing weather forecasts, improving air quality monitoring, and refining climate models.

Greenhouse gases—such as carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and methane (CH₄)—play a crucial role in regulating the Earth's climate by trapping heat in the atmosphere. Monitoring their concentrations, particularly near local sources, is important for understanding the balance between natural emissions and human activities. High-precision Picarro cavity ring-down spectroscopy analyzers enable continuous, real-time measurements of these gases with exceptional accuracy (e.g., <0.1 ppm for CO₂, <2 ppb for CH₄). When combined with meteorological data (e.g., wind speed and direction), advanced statistical methods such as Non-Parametric Wind Regression (NWR) can be applied to trace emission sources and estimate their strength. NWR is particularly useful for identifying localized pollution plumes without assuming a predefined wind-concentration relationship.

Integrating high-frequency gas measurements with wind field analyses, spatially resolved emission products are generated, enabling near-real-time source attribution, improving our understanding of source-receptor relationships, and supporting local targeted mitigation strategies.

Integrated Water Vapour

Water vapor is a fundamental component of the Earth's atmosphere, critically influencing both weather systems and climate dynamics. Our research utilizes real-time measurements of Integrated Water Vapor (IWV) derived from the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) to better understand atmospheric processes.

By leveraging ground-based GNSS stations, we obtain continuous, high-resolution IWV data that offers valuable insights into atmospheric moisture content. These measurements serve as ground-truth for validating satellite-based observations and are essential for improving the accuracy of numerical weather prediction models and climate studies.

GNSS-IWV data is particularly important in the context of extreme weather events, such as heavy precipitation and flash floods, where rapid changes in atmospheric moisture can have significant impacts. Real-time monitoring enhances the ability to forecast and respond to hydrometeorological hazards more effectively.

Additionally, IWV data contributes to more precise GPS positioning, by accounting for signal delays caused by atmospheric water vapor—benefiting a range of geospatial applications.

The integration of ground-based and satellite-derived IWV data underpins practical solutions in disaster risk reduction, climate monitoring, and environmental management.

For real-time data please visit http://reactive.infp.ro/.

Cloud Data

Cloud Top Height Cloud Phase

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IWV Maps

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Radionuclide monitoring

Xenon radionuclides play a crucial role in nuclear monitoring, particularly in detecting nuclear explosions as part of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty verification regime. These isotopes are produced during nuclear reactions and can be released into the atmosphere, making them important indicators of nuclear activities.

The relatively long half-lives of key xenon isotopes: such as 133Xe with a half-life of 5.25 days and 131mXe with a half-life of 11.9 hours enable monitoring of nuclear post-release. This extended detection window, combined with atmospheric transport modeling, facilitates the backtracking of xenon plumes to their possible source.

State-of-the-art equipment, operated by the National Institute for Earth Physics (NIEP) in collaboration with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), is now used to detect extremely low concentrations of these isotopes in the atmosphere with high sensitivity and precision. NIEP currently employs these advanced detection systems at two monitoring stations in Romania: the “Bernie” site, located in the northern part of the country, and the “Seaside” site, situated in the southeast.

Research based on these data focuses on studying atmospheric transport dynamics, distinguishing background xenon isotopes level, identifying emissions from medical isotope production facilities or nuclear reactors, and detecting any unusual activities.

All these facilities are a result of close collaboration between NIEP and PNNL.