Zero-dimensional contrail models could underpredict lifetime optical depth

Akhtar Martínez, Caleb; Eastham, Sebastian D.; Jarrett, Jerome P.

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-12875-2025

Articles | Volume 25, issue 20

https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-12875-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-12875-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 25, issue 20

Research article

|

17 Oct 2025

Research article |

| 17 Oct 2025

Zero-dimensional contrail models could underpredict lifetime optical depth

Caleb Akhtar Martínez, Sebastian D. Eastham, and Jerome P. Jarrett

Data sets

Raw CoCiP and APCEMM output data C. Akhtar Martínez et al. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17316788

Model code and software

(Modified for comparison with APCEMM) pycontrails: Python library for modeling aviation climate impact C. Akhtar Martínez et al. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14639631

APCEMM (Modified for Comparison With CoCiP) C. Akhtar Martínez et al. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14640899

Code for CoCiP/APCEMM Comparison C. Akhtar Martínez https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14708885

Video supplement

APCEMM Contrail Simulation Visualization Caleb Akhtar Martínez https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14709364

Short summary

Contrails are clouds that form behind aircraft and can warm the atmosphere as much as carbon dioxide emissions from those planes. This work compares two contrail models of different complexities to understand their lifecycle and impact. The models differ in how contrails evolve over time, implying that we may be significantly underestimating their climate impact. This highlights the need for model diversity and more evaluation against observations of long-lived contrails.