Logo. Source: GAeF
Interdisciplinary aerosol research meets in Leipzig
Leipzig, 03.03.2026 – Tilo Arnhold
Revival of the "Technical Workshop on Suspended Particles" with a broad range of topics
Leipzig. On 10–11 March 2026, over 90 researchers will meet at the Leipzig Science Park for GAeF-START-2026. In 2026, the interdisciplinary conference on airborne particle research will cover a wide range of topics, from the new EU Air Quality Directive to practical issues of measurement and modelling, technical applications and health effects, and the interactions between aerosols, clouds, radiation and climate. It is organised by the Association for Aerosol Research (GAeF) and the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS).
Aerosol particles suspended in the air influence life in many ways: airborne infections, inhalation toxicology and therapy, dust exposure in the workplace, climatic and local weather influences, air chemistry, air pollution, tobacco smoke, industrial production processes, chemical and nuclear safety, radiation protection, pest control and others. Behind every applied problem in the field of aerosols is a scientific knowledge base that has been built up over the last hundred years. Given the growing importance of aerosols in various disciplines (biology, chemistry, medicine, physics, process engineering, meteorology and others), the interdisciplinary nature of aerosol research requires a forum for all scientists interested in aerosol problems.
This forum is provided by the Association for Aerosol Research, which was founded in 1972 as an international professional association on the subject of aerosols and continues to be active internationally with currently around 400 members. Before the GAeF was founded, annual aerosol meetings had been held since the 1950s under the name "Schwebstofftechnische Arbeitstagung" (Technical Workshop on Suspended Particles). These annual meetings were revived in 2024 with the START conferences. START is the acronym for this very workshop, SchwebstoffTechnische ARbeitsTagung.
One of the highlights of GAeF-START-2026 will be tandem presentations by invited speakers who will shed light on specific topics from two perspectives in order to blur the boundaries between the various research areas in aerosol science. For example, employees from two state offices will report on the implementation of the new EU Air Quality Framework Directive in the field of ultrafine particles and their measurement at large measuring stations (so-called supersites), which must be set up across Europe in the coming years. And two researchers from the University of Leipzig will shed light on research in the field of "aerosol-cloud-radiation interactions and climate attribution" from different perspectives.
"The conference will be held in a single session format without parallel sessions, so that everyone has the opportunity to learn about the latest developments in the entire field of aerosol science. This is important to us, not only to organise a high-quality scientific conference, but also to promote exchange between our members and provide a platform for researchers in the early stages of their careers," explains GAeF President Prof. Dr. Andreas Held from the TU Berlin. There will be three main topics in which researchers will discuss many details from their practical work: field campaigns and modelling, atmospheric chemistry and emissions, and measurement technology and aerosol technology. The scientific exchange will be rounded off by the presentation of the GAeF PhD Awards on the evening of 10 March 2026.
Aerosols play a central role in TROPOS' research. That is why many of the researchers are also involved in the Association for Aerosol Research (GAeF). GAeF-START-2026 is being organised locally by Dr Birgit Wehner and Dr Roland Schrödner from TROPOS. Leipzig-based meteorologist Dr Birgit Wehner was elected as the first female Secretary General of the GAeF in 2018 and held this position until 2024. This period also coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, during which the GAeF addressed politicians with position papers and open letters to ensure that key findings from research on the spread of coronaviruses were applied in practice.
Media contacts:
Prof. Dr. Andreas Held
President of GAeF
and Head of Environmental Chemistry and Air Research at the Institute for Technical Environmental Protection at TU Berlin
Tel. +49-30-314-21978
https://www.tu.berlin/uc/ueber-uns/team
and
Dr Birgit Wehner
Research Associate, Particle Formation Team, Department of Atmospheric Microphysics, Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research
Tel. +49-341-2717-7309
https://www.tropos.de/institut/ueber-uns/mitarbeitende/birgit-wehner
and
Dr Roland Schrödner
Research Associate, Department of Atmospheric Process Modelling, Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research
Tel. +49-341-2717-7388
https://www.tropos.de/institut/ueber-uns/mitarbeitende/roland-schroedner
or
Tilo Arnhold, TROPOS Public Relations
Tel. +49 341 2717-7189
http://www.tropos.de/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/
Further information and links:
GAef-START-2026 https://www.info.gaef.de/start2026
Society for Aerosol Research (GAeF) https://www.info.gaef.de/
TROPOS: Key topics and key questions https://www.tropos.de/institut/forschungsprofil/leitthemen-und-leitfragen
Contagion risks from an aerosol science perspective (Open letter from the GAeF to politicians, 11 April 2021) https://www.tropos.de/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/statements/offener-brief-der-gaef-an-die-politik
Position paper by the Society for Aerosol Research on understanding the role of aerosol particles in SARS-CoV-2 infection (7 December 2020) https://www.tropos.de/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/positionspapier-der-gaef-zum-verstaendnis-der-rolle-von-aerosolpartikeln-bei-covid-19
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