Frequent rainfall-induced new particle formation within the canopy in the 
Amazon rainforest

Machado, Luiz A. T.; Unfer, Gabriela R.; Brill, Sebastian; Hildmann, Stefanie; Pöhlker, Christopher; Cheng, Yafang; Williams, Jonathan; Harder, Hartwig; Andreae, Meinrat O.; Artaxo, Paulo; Curtius, Joachim; Franco, Marco A.; Cecchini, Micael A.; Edtbauer, Achim; Hoffmann, Thorsten; Holanda, Bruna; Khadir, Théodore; Krejci, Radovan; Kremper, Leslie A.; Liu, Yunfan; Meller, Bruno B.; Pöhlker, Mira L.; Quesada, Carlos A.; Ringsdorf, Akima; Riipinen, Ilona; Trumbore, Susan; Wolff, Stefan; Lelieveld, Jos; Pöschl, Ulrich

doi:10.1038/s41561-024-01585-0

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Frequent rainfall-induced new particle formation within the canopy in the Amazon rainforest

MPS-Authors

/persons/resource/persons261120

Machado, Luiz A. T.
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons303337

Unfer, Gabriela R.
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons230617

Brill, Sebastian
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons104597

Pöhlker, Christopher
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons302908

Cheng, Yafang
Aerosol Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons101364

Williams, Jonathan
Atmospheric Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons100983

Harder, Hartwig
Atmospheric Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons230413

Andreae, Meinrat O.
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons207353

Edtbauer, Achim
Atmospheric Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons213647

Holanda, Bruna
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons255504

Kremper, Leslie A.
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons280895

Liu, Yunfan
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons255512

Ringsdorf, Akima
Atmospheric Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons230426

Wolff, Stefan
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons101104

Lelieveld, Jos
Atmospheric Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

/persons/resource/persons101189

Pöschl, Ulrich
Multiphase Chemistry, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Max Planck Society;

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Citation

Machado, L. A. T., Unfer, G. R., Brill, S., Hildmann, S., Pöhlker, C., Cheng, Y., et al. (2024). Frequent rainfall-induced new particle formation within the canopy in the Amazon rainforest. Nature Geoscience, 17. doi:10.1038/s41561-024-01585-0.

Cite as: https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-0010-0DBB-E

Abstract

Atmospheric aerosol particles are essential for forming clouds and precipitation, thereby influencing Earth’s energy budget, water cycle and climate on regional and global scales. However, the origin of aerosol particles over the Amazon rainforest during the wet season is poorly understood. Earlier studies showed new particle formation in the outflow of deep convective clouds and suggested a downward flux of aerosol particles during precipitation events. Here we use comprehensive aerosol, trace gas and meteorological data from the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory to show that rainfall regularly induces bursts of nanoparticles in the nucleation size range. This can be attributed to rain-related scavenging of larger particles and a corresponding reduction of the condensation sink, along with an ozone injection into the forest canopy, which could increase the oxidation of biogenic volatile organic compounds, especially terpenes, and enhance new particle formation. During and after rainfall, the nucleation particle concentrations directly above the canopy are greater than those higher up. This gradient persists throughout the wet season for the nucleation size range, indicating continuous particle formation within the canopy, a net upward flux of newly formed particles and a paradigm shift in understanding aerosol–cloud–precipitation interactions in the Amazon. Particle bursts provide a plausible explanation for the formation of cloud condensation nuclei, leading to the local formation of green-ocean clouds and precipitation. Our findings suggest that an interplay of a rain-related reduction in the condensation sink, primary emissions of gases, mainly terpenes, and particles from the forest canopy, and convective cloud processing determines the population of cloud condensation nuclei in pristine rainforest air.