Tristan Sasse, Libby Hendersen, Michael Box, Gail Box, Chris Reyes

I was fortunate enough to be awarded a summer vacation scholarship from the School of Physics, which gave me the great opportunity to work with A/Prof Michael Box, Dr Gail Box, and fellow vacation scholars, Tristan Sasse and Libby Hendersen. I was given the project on ‘Ozone variation’, while Tristan worked on ‘Numerical experimentation of the size distribution of particles using the Analytic Eigenfunction method’ and Libby worked on ‘Variation in aerosol size over Darwin and Tennant Creek’.

The aim of my project was to analyse differences in ozone, between morning and afternoon, over Darwin, and see if we could explain it by the increased biomass burning within that region. Because of the nature of the data (the data gave the amount of ozone in a column integrated over the whole atmosphere), it was difficult to get a full understanding of what was happening in the troposphere (0-10kms above sea level), so statistical inference was used to analyse the data. We are interested in this because ozone is a pollutant in this region. There were a few days that had enough evidence (size of fires, proximity, wind speed, direction) to support the idea that the ozone increases in the afternoon were influenced by the biomass burnings.

We also had the opportunity to visit the ANSTO research facility in Lucas Heights. There were many highlights such as the particle accelerators, but I think the ‘smog chamber’ was certainly the best. It is used to study urban city air and its characteristics given differences in meteorology and gas concentrations.

The vacation scholarship was a rewarding experience because it gave me an insight of the highs and lows associated with researching. At times I didn’t have data for days that I would have liked; other times I had too much data for the given day! It has also reinforced my interest in this area and I can’t wait for my Honours year!

I was also lucky to be able to attend the AMOS (Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society) 2007 Annual Conference, which was held in Adelaide. It was a truly rewarding and insightful experience. Firstly, it gave me the opportunity to meet and interact with academics and students in the field. Secondly, it provided the first-hand look on the type of research currently done in Australia. The days were full of interesting presentations, with three ‘lunch’ breaks allowing some lively discussions between academics. Then the day would end with a few beers at the bar followed by dinner (with other students) in Glenelg. The conference dinner was fascinating because it showed that even some of the older professors, after a few drinks, are students at heart!

All in all, the summer scholarship was an excellent experience and I recommend those who are considering Honours to apply for it!