Particle errors: Quantifying the effects of simulation mixing state on aerosol optical properties

Particles in the atmosphere affect global climate. For example, the black carbon from burning fossil fuels absorbs and radiates light and heat. To calculate the effects of aerosols on climate, scientists rely on simulated aerosol fields. How these models represent aerosol mixing state potentially introduces large uncertainties into climate calculations. This is because the simulated aerosol optical properties—how particles absorb and scatter light—are sensitive to mixing state. Mixing state refers to how various properties are distributed across the particles in the air.