Wrap your head around this: humans have changed clouds. In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned: Climate), MIT professor Dan Cziczo joins host Laur Hesse Fisher to spell out why this is, and what this has to do with climate change. They explore how clouds form in the first place, how human activity has impacted cloud formation and rainfall, and what scientists are still trying to understand. They touch upon the emerging field of geoengineering and how humans could create more clouds to cool the planet — but we’ll have full episode on that coming out soon. Prof. Cziczo is a professor of Atmospheric Chemistry and has been an MIT faculty member since 2011. Prof. Cziczo is interested in the relationship between particulate matter and cloud formation, and his research focuses on how human activities are changing clouds and particles, and what those changes mean for atmospheric science.

For other short, climate-explainer podcasts, see: www.tilclimate.mit.edu on MIT’s Climate portal.

Read more about:

Prof. Cziczo and his research:

• Cziczo Research Group website
• Can rain clean the atmosphere? Study explains how rain droplets attract aerosols out of the atmosphere. (MIT News)
• Dust in the Clouds (MIT News)

Scientific uncertainty and geoengineering:

• vs-uncertainty.html#.XBphma2ZMnV">Certainty vs. Uncertainty: Understanding Scientific Terms about Climate Change (Union of Concerned Scientists)
• The Future of Geoengineering is Far from Settled (MIT News)

An overview of climate change:

• Climate Science and Climate Risk: A Primer (MIT’s Kerry Emanuel)

Credits Laur Hesse Fisher, Host and Producer David Lishansky, Editor and Producer Ruby Wincele, Student Researcher Cecelia Bolon, Student Coordinator Music by Blue Dot Sessions Artwork by Aaron Krol Special thanks to Tom Kiley and Laura Howells. Produced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.