weather Archive - ATTO - Amazon Tall Tower Observatory

When Storms Hit: Frequent Thunderstorms Shape the Amazon’s Forest–Atmosphere Interactions

Thunderstorms regularly reshape weather over the Amazon. Using high-frequency data from the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory, researchers cataloged 410 storms (Aug 2021–Dec 2023) and found they strike about every other day, mostly from midafternoon to evening and April–September. The forest canopy mutes most gusts below it, while above-canopy airflow matches textbook storm patterns—insights that improve models of energy, aerosol, and greenhouse gas exchanges for better weather and climate predictions.

Publications

Can storms’ gust fronts increase carbon dioxide in the lower atmosphere?

Luciane Reis and her colleagues now performed a new study at the ATTO site that shows that gust fronts can also cause large jumps in carbon dioxide concentrations. But what are the sources of this carbon-dioxide-rich air?

Publications

Nanoparticle Bursts over the Amazon Rainforest

Atmospheric aerosol particles are essential for the formation of clouds and precipitation, thereby influencing the Earth’s energy budget, water cycle, and climate. However, the origin of aerosol particles in pristine air over the Amazon rainforest during the wet season is poorly understood. A new study reveals that rainfall regularly induces bursts of newly formed nanoparticles in the air above the forest canopy.

Publications

Growing cloud seeds in the Amazon rainforest

In a new study, Marco A. Franco and his colleagues analyzed when and under what conditions aerosols grow to a size relevant for cloud formation. Such growth events are relatively rare in the Amazon rainforest and follow and pronounced diurnal and seasonal cycles. The majority take place during the daytime, and during the wet season. But the team also discovered a few remarkable exceptions.

Publications

How weather affects atmospheric aerosols

It is long known that aerosols, directly and indirectly, affect clouds and precipitation. But very few studies have focused on the opposite: the question of how clouds modify aerosol properties. Therefore, Luiz Machado and his colleagues looked into this process at ATTO. Specifically, they studied how weather events influenced the size distribution of aerosol particles.

Publications