Contrails: Curious streaks in the sky

You’ve seen them: Streaks of white clouds slashing across the sky, evidence of the [busy jet traffic]( above. First documented [during World War I]( contrails have been at the center of military skirmishes, conspiracy theories, ecological debates, and some pretty emo poetry. Contrails are also known to conspiracy buffs as “chemtrails.” Despite the US government’s [efforts to debunk]( notion that they pose a threat to human health, some still cling to the idea that jets routinely spray behavior-altering chemicals in the air. But they might still be a problem. [Contrails affect the climate]( just don’t exactly know how. For a time, it was believed that they [have a cooling effect](. But more recent research suggests that they actually contribute to the earth’s warming. At this time, make sure your seatbelt is properly fastened—we’re following this streaky trail into the wild blue yonder. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( [Quartz Obsession] Contrails November 27, 2019 Clouded judgement --------------------------------------------------------------- You’ve seen them: Streaks of white clouds slashing across the sky, evidence of the [busy jet traffic]( above. First documented [during World War I]( contrails have been at the center of military skirmishes, conspiracy theories, ecological debates, and some pretty emo poetry. Contrails are also known to conspiracy buffs as “chemtrails.” Despite the US government’s [efforts to debunk]( notion that they pose a threat to human health, some still cling to the idea that jets routinely spray behavior-altering chemicals in the air. But they might still be a problem. [Contrails affect the climate]( just don’t exactly know how. For a time, it was believed that they [have a cooling effect](. But more recent research suggests that they actually contribute to the earth’s warming. At this time, make sure your seatbelt is properly fastened—we’re following this streaky trail into the wild blue yonder. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( by the digits [14,000:]( Average number of planes in the air at any given time—check [Flight Radar]( for the real-time number [39 million:]( Estimated number of commercial flights in 2019 [6.5%:]( Increase in global air traffic in 2018, according to the International Air Transport Association [-40°F (-40°C):]( Atmospheric temperature conducive to contrail formation [26,000 ft and above:]( Altitude at which contrails typically form [$2,910:]( List price of Contrails Over Nebraska, an oil painting by artist Greg Larson [900 million metric tons:]( Estimated global airline CO2 emissions in 2018 [0.6%:]( Portion of the sky typically covered by contrail cirrus clouds Giphy explain it like i'm 5! The science of contrails --------------------------------------------------------------- Short for “condensation trails,” contrails are are man-made cirrus clouds that appear when the jet hits a patch of wet air. It’s a similar phenomenon to [seeing your own breath]( during a cold winter day. Jets emit both solid particles (aerosols) and gas (vapor). The heady mix includes soot, metal particles, carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons such as methane, and sulfates. Contrails form when vapor freezes around the solid particles from a plane’s exhaust. Wingtip vortices—[skinny contrails]( that spectacularly trail behind the end of a plane’s wings—are a related phenomenon, created when the [pressure change from the plane’s lift]( causes water to [condense into a line of droplets](. Created in a similar fashion are [aerodynamic contrails]( (pdf); at high altitudes, the ice crystals in these refract sunlight like a prism, [creating a rainbow effect](. Note that [sky-writing, or “smoke-riding,”]( doesn’t produce contrails. These often sappy sky messages are generated by smaller planes equipped with a smoke machine, and it is performed at much lower altitudes, [usually between 7,000 and 14,000 ft]( (2,100 and 4,300 m). Fun fact: Skytyping is a technique that involves forming dot-matrix-like letters in the sky via perfectly-placed smoke puffs. quotable “Your jet contrails stream across my face of sky” —[From Fly Over Poem with Billy Collins Ending by Matt Rasmussen]( WMO International Cloud Atlas/ George Anderson take me down this 🐰 hole! When contrails tailed off --------------------------------------------------------------- September 2001 is a milestone in contrails research. In the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the FAA grounded all commercial flights in the US for three days. This gave climatologists from Penn State and the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater [a rare opportunity to study]( the atmosphere without any planes or resulting emissions. They recorded “an anomalous increase” in the earth’s temperature when contrails weren’t present, which led them to conclude that the man-made clouds actually help stabilize the earth’s daytime and nighttime temperatures by trapping “the transfer of both incoming solar and outgoing infrared radiation.” Since then, studies have gone [back]( and [forth]( on this effect. But earlier this year, researchers from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany [published a study]( that cast contrails in darker light. They argue that contrails actually contribute to global warming in greater measures than the greenhouse gas emissions of the entire global aviation industry. “Usually people say clouds are cooling the surface. For lower clouds that’s true. They reflect sunlight. But high clouds that are optically thin are most likely to warm the atmosphere,” explained Ulrike Burkhardt, a climate researcher who co-authored the study. Researchers predict a tripling of this warming effect by 2050 if airline traffic continues at this pace. REUTERS/Toby Melville pop quiz Which of these isn’t real? Contrails: A cloud computing softwareContrails: A dating app for frequent travelersContrails: A magazine about private jetsContrails: A handbook for new US Air Force cadets Correct. Incorrect. If your inbox doesn’t support this quiz, find the solution at bottom of email. brief history [1919:]( Franz-Zeno Diemer, a test pilot in the Bavarian Flying Corps, manages to ascend past 30,000 ft above Munich and documents contrails generated by his aircraft in the flight log. [1944:]( Life magazine publishes a series of evocative photographs of contrails that trace military skirmishes in the sky during World War II. [1953:]( Scientist H. Appleman publishes a diagram predicting the conditions when aircrafts form contrails. The US military is particularly interested in these forecasts because jets that emit contrails become vulnerable targets. [1980:]( NBC airs a news report explaining how the “thin white clouds” from jets may be changing the weather. [1994:]( The US military awards a $63.5 million contract to Northrop Corporation to develop technology that would allow pilots to suppress the formation of contrails in its B-2 stealth bombers. [1996:]( A US Air Force white paper, “Weather as a Force Multiplier,” helps kick off the chemtrails conspiracy. [2011:]( A study published in Nature suggests that the formation of contrail cirrus clouds “[contributes more to atmospheric warming]( than all the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by planes since the dawn of aviation.” [2013:]( “Contrail” by Japanese pop idol Namie Amuro reaches eighth place on Billboard’s Japan’s Hot 100 list. The breezy dance ditty has since been a [staple in the repertoire]( of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force Central Air Defense Force Band. [2017:]( A US Navy crew expertly maneuvers an EA-18G jet to form a “sky penis” contrail. [2019]( German photographer Nick Beyersdorf captures a spectacular rainbow contrail emitted by a Qatar Airlines flight. Have a friend who would enjoy our Obsession with Contrails? [ [Forward link to a friend](mailto:?subject=Thought you'd enjoy.&body=Read this Quartz Obsession email – to the email – Giphy The way we 🚀now The Prince of conspiracy theories --------------------------------------------------------------- The late musician Prince was an ardent believer in the chemtrail conspiracy theory. Prince’s ideas about chemtrails were mostly shaped by Dick Gregory, a comedian-turned-civil-rights-activist who believed that government-sanctioned planes routinely sprayed manganese over black communities to keep them subjugated. The Purple One discussed this at length during a 2009 interview with [PBS host Tavis Smiley]( “He said something that really hit home about this phenomenon of chemtrails. You know, when I was a kid, I used to see these trails in the sky all the time. So that’s cool, a jet just went over. And then you started to see a whole bunch of them, and next thing you know everybody in your neighborhood was fighting and arguing and you didn’t know why…. So he started riffing about the chemtrails. He started to say things that hit home so hard… I was so moved that I had to write this [Dreamers] song.” As Prince mentions in the interview, his 2009 song [“Dreamers.” contains lyrics that reflect his suspicions]( “While the helicopter circles us, this theory’s getting deep / Think they’re spraying chemicals over the city.” fun fact! The 2006 DreamWorks CGI comedy Over the Hedge is [a landmark moment]( in the annals of contrails. [In several frames]( contrail (or “chemtrail”) fanatics noted the appearance of streaky white clouds. Some contend that it’s a [subliminal tactic]( to “brainwash children into not noticing them when they grow up.” According to one of the co-directors, it’s just what [a clear suburban sky looks like](. watch this! “A monster vapor trail” --------------------------------------------------------------- “This contrail looks dark against the rising sun,” noted pilot Lou Boyer, rather dryly. He caught this [cinematic vapor cloud]( on camera in 2017. The 30-second clip of a Boeing 787 flying 33,000 ft over eastern Russia [went viral]( and gave new steam to chemtrail conspiracy theorists who believe that jets routinely spread [chemicals in the atmosphere](. DIY Contrail cocktail --------------------------------------------------------------- Can’t get enough contrails? NASA shows how to [make them at home]( (pdf). Giphy poll I think contrails are: [Click here to vote]( PrettyPretty alarmingI’ve honestly never given them any thought until now 💬 let's talk! 🤔 [What did you think of today’s email?](mailto:obsession%2Bfeedback@qz.com?cc=&subject=Thoughts%20about%20contrails&body=) 💡 [What should we obsess over next?](mailto:obsession%2Bideas@qz.com?cc=&subject=Obsess%20over%20this%20next.&body=) [🎲 Show me a random Obsession]( Today’s email was written by [Anne Quito]( edited by [Annaliese Griffin]( and produced by [Tori Smith](. The correct answer to the quiz is Contrails: A dating app for frequent travelers. Enjoying the Quartz Obsession? [Send this link]( to a friend! Want to advertise in the Quartz Obsession? Send us an email at ads@qz.com. Not enjoying it? No worries. [Click here]( to unsubscribe. Quartz | 675 Avenue of the Americas, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10011 | United States [Share this email](