Joyce Penner is an atmospheric scientist known for her research on climate change, especially on the impact of aerosols and clouds.
[1][2] Penner moved to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 1977 and remained there until 1996, serving as a group leader from 1987 until her departure for University of Michigan in 1996.
[5] In 2007, she was one of 7 lead authors for chapter 9 on "Understanding and attributing climate change" (IPCC AR4 WG1 Ch9 2007 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFIPCC_AR4_WG1_Ch92007 (help)).
Through her research, Penner has shown that the composition of aerosols impacts whether particles will increase or decrease global temperatures.
[13] Within her climate models, Penner has examined the role of nitrogen compounds[14][15] and her research revealed that the nitric acid produced by supersonic aircraft (e.g., the Concorde) can lead to decreases in atmospheric ozone concentrations.