Ross Edwards

Associate Professor Ross Edwards is an ultra-trace scientist investigating the present and past history of smoke and other aerosols in the atmosphere. These particles change the properties of the atmosphere influencing climate and atmospheric chemistry, and the health of the biosphere. He is the leader of the Curtin University, Trace Research Advanced Clean Environment facility (TRACE, John de Laeter Centre), which contains advanced capabilities for ice core and water analysis and the preparation of Ancient DNA (led by Prof. Michael Bunce, TrEND group) and geologic samples. His expertise ranges from the analysis of polar ice-cores by high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to the ultra-trace analysis of black carbon nanoparticles (soot). As an inventor, he has pioneered new analytical methods and created equipment that has allowed the continuous analysis of ice cores at the parts per quadrillion level and the ultra-trace analysis of soot in water.