Dimensions: Collaborative Research: Research on Airborne Ice-Nucleating Species (RAINS)

维度：合作研究：空气冰核物种（RAINS）研究

• 批准号: 1241068
• 负责人: Boris Vinatzer
• 金额: $ 90.99万
• 依托单位: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-01-01 至 2017-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1241068&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dimensions; Collaborative; Research; Airborne; Ice

Microorganisms are abundant in the atmosphere and play an important role in controlling cloud development, cloud chemistry and ultimately weather patterns. They do this primarily by producing enzymes that catalyze the formation (nucleation) of ice crystals at significantly warmer temperatures than would normally be required for ice formation (-2 C vs. -36 C). Despite the atmosphere?s fundamental role in their dispersal, the abundance, diversity and flux of microorganisms in the atmosphere remain largely unknown. The potential of ice-nucleating microorganisms to significantly impact meteorology and promote microbial dispersal during precipitation events motivates this research. The RAINS project will sample rain, snow and air samples at ground level, and in the lower atmosphere using remote-controlled aircraft. The project will: (1) characterize microbial taxonomic diversity, including in precipitation that occurred between 1794 AD and present, and which is preserved in glacial ice; (2) determine the genetic diversity of microbial assemblages and of individual ice nucleating bacteria and (3) examine the functional diversity with respect to the role of precipitation and biological ice nucleation on patterns of microbial distribution. The work will also determine which microbes carried to the Earth?s surface via precipitation present possible inoculum sources for diseases that impact humans, domestic animals, and plants. The RAINS project will increase understanding of biodiversity in the planetary boundary layer of the atmosphere, where important meteorological phenomena such as precipitation occur. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommended developing a better understanding of the effect of aerosols and atmospheric ice formation in order to improve climate models and forecast the impact of rising global temperature. The proposed study will increase knowledge on the nature of the most active ice nucleators in the atmosphere. Microbial ice nucleation may also allow microorganisms and certain plant pathogens to efficiently cycle between the atmosphere and surface habitats, and RAINS will contribute to ongoing efforts to assess the movement of ice nucleating microorganisms across geographical scales. Outreach efforts will take these advances into high school and college classrooms in the form of hands-on research experiences for students at both levels and will serve as the basis for high school educators to develop unique classroom activities. In addition, an international network of scientists collecting field data on the relationship between biological ice nucleator abundance, cropping patterns and precipitation in dry land regions will be established. RAINS will sponsor an international conference that brings together 10 young career scientists in the network to highlight the advances of these investigations and identify the outstanding scientific questions.

微生物在大气中很丰富，并且在控制云发展，云化学和最终天气模式中起着重要作用。他们主要是通过产生催化冰晶的形成（成核）在温度明显温暖的酶（成核）比冰形成通常所需的（-2 c vs. -36 c）所需的酶来做到这一点。尽管大气在分散中具有基本作用，但大气中微生物的丰度，多样性和助焊剂仍然在很大程度上未知。冰 - 无核微生物在降水事件期间显着影响气象并促进微生物分散的潜力激发了这项研究。 降雨项目将在地面上采样雨，雪和空气样品，并在较低的大气中使用遥控飞机在较低的大气中采样。 该项目将：（1）表征微生物分类学多样性，包括在公元1794年和现在发生的降水中，并保存在冰川冰中； （2）确定微生物组合的遗传多样性和单个冰核细菌的遗传多样性，（3）检查功能多样性相对于降水和生物冰核对微生物分布模式的作用而言。 这项工作还将确定哪些微生物通过降水携带到地球表面，这可能是影响人类，家畜和植物的疾病。降雨项目将增加对大气行星边界层生物多样性的理解，在大气层的行星边界层中发生了重要的气象现象，例如降水。 政府间气候变化的面板建议更好地了解气溶胶和大气冰形成的影响，以改善气候模型并预测全球温度上升的影响。拟议的研究将增加对大气中最活跃的冰核的性质的知识。微生物冰成核还可以允许微生物和某些植物病原体在大气和表面栖息地之间有效循环，而雨水将有助于评估跨地理尺度的微生物的运动。外展工作将以这两个级别的学生的动手研究经验的形式将这些进步带入高中和大学教室，并将作为高中教育者开发独特课堂活动的基础。此外，将建立一个国际科学家网络，该网络将建立有关生物冰的丰度，耕地模式和降水量之间关系的现场数据。 RANS将赞助一个国际会议，该会议汇集了该网络中的10位年轻职业科学家，以突出这些调查的进步并确定了杰出的科学问题。