Leibniz Institute of Atmospheric Physics e.V.

Historical remarks

Following a recommendation of the `Wissenschaftsrat` (a scientific panel of the federal government of Germany) the `Institut für Atmosphärenphysik an der Universität Rostock e.V.` was founded on January 1, 1992. The institute is a independent scientific organization, funded to by the federal government of Germany and the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It belongs to a group of institutes which were founded on the basis of an agreement between the federal government and the local states and which were originally called `Blaue Liste Institute`. In 1995 most of these institutes became members of the new organization `Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft Blaue Liste (WBL)`, which was renamed to `Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz` (WGL) in 1997. Since October 18, 1998, the official name of our institute is `Leibniz-Institut für Atmosphärenphysik e.V. an der Universität Rostock` hereafter called IAP.

Science program and organizational structure

The main scientific objective studied at the IAP is the middle atmosphere in the altitude range 10-100km with particular emphasis on the dynamical coupling between the lower and middle atmosphere. The upper part of the middle atmosphere, say between 70 and 100 km, is one of the least understood region of our atmosphere. The scientific interest in this region has steadily increased in the last years since there is more and more evidence that this region could be specially sensitive to global change. Modern active remote sensing techniques, in particular radars and lidars, are now capable of revealing new and unprecedented experimental information about the physical processes in the middle atmosphere and their long term trend.

The main scientific objectives studied at the IAP are as follows (the labels `Exp` and `Mod` indicate that this particular field is studied by experimental and model techniques, respectively)

• The polar middle atmosphere including `noctilucent clouds`, NLC, and `polar mesosphere summer echoes`, PMSE (Exp, Mod)
  
• The atmosphere at the mesopause (Exp, Mod)
  
• Metal atom layers at altitudes from 80 to 110 km (Exp, Mod)
  
• Tides and gravity waves in the middle atmosphere (Exp, Mod)
  
• Low frequency variability of the dynamical coupling between the troposphere and stratosphere (Mod)
  
• Physics of the meridional circulation (Mod)
  
• Processes at the tropopause, mixing of trace gases (Exp, Mod)
  
• Trends in the middle atmosphere (Exp, Mod)

Furthermore, some scientists at the IAP are working in specific areas not listed above, for example the technological improvement of the experimental techniques. Every 2 years the scientific results are published in a report the latest version of which can be found under annual report.

The institute consists of 3 departments:

• Optical sounding
  
• Radar sounding
  
• Modeling and Data analysis

Since the inauguration of the new director on September 1, 1999, a new field of research, namely insitu measurements by rocket borne techniques has been introduced at the IAP. The transfer of the laboratory equipment from the Physics Department of Bonn University to the IAP will take place in summer 2000. At that point a decision will be made how this new activity will be incorporated in the current organizational structure of the institute.

Leibniz Institute of Atmospheric Physics e.V.
Schlossstraße 6
18225 Kühlungsborn
Tel: +49 (0)38293 / 680
Fax: +49 (0)38293 / 68 - 50

Press releases

Further Information: www.iap-kborn.de/