2.10. 2024, Milešovka: The third measurement campaign was launched at the observatory on the Milešovka mountain in the North of Czechia, where scientists from 22 countries involved in the BIOSPHERE project are looking for the relationship between the causes of ozone depletion. The measurements are coordinated by the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the CAS, and ADVACAM is also a partner in the project.
Cosmic rays, UV radiation, atmospheric parameters and anthropogenic emissions are being measured in parallel. Milešovka was chosen because of its low emissions and higher altitude. Measurements have been made in Athens and Brussels, with Milesovka yet to be followed by Lindernberg in Germany. The space for the measuring equipment at Milešovka was provided by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences.
“The European BIOSPHERE project focuses on the impact of the combination of cosmic rays, UV radiation and man-made molecules in the atmosphere on the ozone layer and tries to quantify these partial effects and look for relationships and connections between them,” says Dr. Iva Ambrožová. “The description of these connections has an important overlap with the protection of human health,” she adds, adding that the Institute has developed a special detector for the purpose of obtaining information about neutrons in cosmic rays.
“Our goal is to precisely measure the composition of cosmic rays passing through the atmosphere. This will allow us to understand very precisely the physical processes that accompany, for example, the depletion of the ozone layer or have a significant impact on human health,” explains the project’s principal investigator doc. Carlos Granja from ADVACAM. The company supplies its miniature radiation cameras, which work as particle telescopes at Milešovka, for the experiments.
About the international BIOSPHERE project
The EURAMET BIOSPHERE (Metrology for Earth Biosphere: Cosmic rays, ultraviolet radiation and fragility of ozone shield) project, launched in October 2022, aims to develop the necessary tools, methodologies and metrological framework to quantify the relationship between cosmic rays, ozone depletion and anthropogenic emissions and to assess the impact of combined secondary cosmic rays and UV radiation on human health.
The project involves a consortium of 22 international scientific institutions. The 21GRD02 BIOSPHERE project receives funding from the European Metrology Partnership, co-funded by the EU’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme and the participating countries.
The international coordinator of the project is the German National Metrology Institute (PTB, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt).
