AI for Climate Impact Assessment of Contrails

Meet Irene Ortiz, a young researcher at the Aircraft Operations Lab of Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), who shares her contribution to the E-CONTRAIL project.

In this video, she takes us through the project’s workflow, which focuses on advancing the detection and prediction of contrails. Although often invisible to the human eye, contrails can have a considerable impact on global warming by contributing to radiative forcing. As Irene emphasizes, their impact depends on atmospheric conditions, they can have either a warming or cooling effect, but overall, they are recognized as an important driver of climate change.

What makes Irene’s work especially exciting is her use of AI algorithms  to enhance the accuracy of contrail prediction models. This innovative approach paves the way for more effective strategies to reduce aviation’s environmental footprint.

Watch the video to find out how AI supports the transition toward a more sustainable future in air transport.