Dr Bethan Owen
Reader
My profile
Biography
Reader in Department of Natural Sciences. My background is in chemistry, emissions, and atmospheric science and I have specialized in the field of aviation and environment for the last 25 years. I have considerable experience in undertaking and managing scientific projects using my specialist knowledge on aviation emissions, technology, scenarios and impacts to consider both local air quality and global climate impacts. I have good science communication skills and I have worked in developing links between science, policy and regulation. I work at a national (UK government) and international level, including the European Commission, the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO.
Interests and expertise
My core research expertise is aviation and environment, and my work has also incorporated elements of technology development (e.g. engine technology), economics and policy design (e.g. market-based measures, emissions trading), mitigation and adaptation (e.g. quantification of projected technology benefits and biofuels). Much of the work is collaborative at the international level. For example, I work with the German Institute of Physics (DLR), the France national research organisation (ONERA) and the Spanish National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA). I also work closely with international regulators such as the US Federal Aviation Administration (USFAA), and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
Impact
Knowledge exchange is a critical part of my role in terms of forming a bridge between industry, international policy makers, and NGOs on issues of emissions regulation for climate and air quality, in relation to aviation.
Through my research on the environmental impacts of aviation I have acted as an official technical advisor to international bodies including ICAO and the European Commission. I have been influential and directly involved in work that has shaped international policy and regulation (e.g. design of the EU emissions trading scheme for aviation; ICAO CO2 emission standard for aircraft; ICAO global market-based mechanism ‘CORSIA’). I co-lead the technical working group within ICAO (Working Group 3: Emissions and Technology), which is responsible for developing international emissions regulations for aeroplanes and aircraft engines. Currently the group is charged with developing a new dual regulation for aeroplane noise and CO2 emissions, the first of its type. I have co-led the working group for 7 years and during this period the new aircraft engine regulations for particulate matter emissions (mass and number) have been developed and agreed by ICAO. These international engine certification requirements are part of the airworthiness certification process and are being or have been adopted into domestic regulations around the world.
Projects
Ongoing Projects include:
Competitive tender awarded to Manchester Met. (Jan 2020) for scientific and policy support on aviation and climate change to the UK Department for Transport.
H2020 project (Jan 2021) ‘SENECA’ (LTO) noiSe and EmissioNs of supErsonic Aircraft):
H2020 project (Jan 2020) ‘ACACIA’ (Advancing the Science for Aviation and ClimAte):
Recently completed projects include:
H2020 (June 2019) AVIATOR Assessing aViation emission Impact on local Air quality at airports: TOwards Regulation
New Projects include:
H2020 PULSAR (Feb 2023)
H2020 HOPE (Feb 2023)
Teaching
I contribute to the research group’s teaching for the Department of Natural Sciences. My aim is to ensure that undergraduates will be more aware and informed by the research group’s work.
Research outputs
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Chapters in books
Owen, B., Lee, D.S. (2010) 'Aviation Emissions Environmental Impact, Manufacturing and Operations Emissions and Atmospheric Impact.' Encyclopedia of Aerospace Engineering. John Wiley and Sons,
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Reports
Lee, D., Arrowsmith, S., Skowron, A., Owen, B., Sausen, R., Boucher, O., Faber, J., Marianne, L., Fuglestvedt, J., van Wijngaarden, L. (2020) Updated analysis of the non-CO2 climate impacts of aviation and potential policy measures pursuant to EU Emissions Trading System Directive Article 30(4). Cologne, Germany: European Aviation Safety Agency.
Hupe, J. (2016) ICAO Environment Report, 2016. ICAO.
Owen, B. (2016) Post Madrid Analysis of the GMBM (CORSIA) for UK DfT. MMU.
Owen, B. (2016) Pre-Madrid ETS vs GMBM for DfT. MMU.
Hupe, J. (2013) ICAO Environmental Report, 2013. ICAO.
Owen, B., Lee, D., Lim, L.L. (2013) Bridging the aviation CO2 emissions gap: why emissions trading is needed.. UNEP.
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Journal articles
Lee, D., Allen, M.R., Cumpsty, N., Owen, B., Shine, K.P., Skowron, A. (2023) 'Uncertainties in mitigating aviation non-CO2 emissions for climate and air quality using hydrocarbon fuels.' Environmental Science: Atmospheres,
Owen, B., Anet, J.G., Bertier, N., Christie, S., Cremaschi, M., Dellaert, S., Edebeli, J., Janicke, U., Kuenen, J., Lim, L., Terrenoire, E. (2022) 'Review: particulate matter emissions from aircraft.' Atmosphere, 13(8) pp. 1230-1230.
Matthes, S., Lee, D.S., De Leon, R.R., Lim, L., Owen, B., Skowron, A., Thor, R.N., Terrenoire, E. (2022) 'Review: The Effects of Supersonic Aviation on Ozone and Climate.' Aerospace, 9(1) pp. 41-41.
Matthes, S., Lim, L., Burkhardt, U., Dahlmann, K., Dietmüller, S., Grewe, V., Haslerud, A.S., Hendricks, J., Owen, B., Pitari, G., Righi, M., Skowron, A. (2021) 'Mitigation of Non-CO2 Aviation’s Climate Impact by Changing Cruise Altitudes.' Aerospace, 8(2) pp. 36-36.
Skowron, A., Lee, D.S., Rodriguez De Leon, R., Lim, L., Owen, B. (2021) 'Greater fuel efficiency is potentially preferable to reducing NOx emissions for aviation’s climate impacts.' Nature Communications, 12(564)
Lee, D.S., Fahey, D.W., Skowron, A., Allen, M.R., Burkhardt, U., Chen, Q., Doherty, S.J., Freeman, S., Forster, P.M., Fuglestvedt, J., Gettelman, A., De León, R.R., Lim, L.L., Lund, M.T., Millar, R.J., Owen, B., Penner, J.E., Pitari, G., Prather, M.J., Sausen, R., Wilcox, L.J. (2020) 'The contribution of global aviation to anthropogenic climate forcing for 2000 to 2018.' Atmospheric Environment, 244(117834)
Agarwal, A., Speth, R.L., Fritz, T.M., Jacob, S.D., Rindlisbacher, T., Iovinelli, R., Owen, B., Miake-Lye, R.C., Sabnis, J.S., Barrett, S.R.H. (2019) 'SCOPE11 Method for Estimating Aircraft Black Carbon Mass and Particle Number Emissions..' Environmental Science and Technology (Washington), 53(3) pp. 1364-1373.
Matthes, S., Grewe, V., Dahlmann, K., Frömming, C., Irvine, E., Lim, L., Linke, F., Lührs, B., Owen, B., Shine, K., Stromatas, S., Yamashita, H., Yin, F. (2017) 'A Concept for Multi-Criteria Environmental Assessment of Aircraft Trajectories.' Aerospace, 4(3)
Søvde, O.A., Matthes, S., Skowron, A., Iachetti, D., Lim, L., Owen, B., Hodnebrog, Ø., Di Genova, G., Pitari, G., Lee, D.S., Myhre, G., Isaksen, I.S.A. (2014) 'Aircraft emission mitigation by changing route altitude: a multi-model estimate of aircraft NOx emission impact on O3 photochemistry.' Atmospheric Environment, 95pp. 468-479.
Olsen, S.C., Wuebbles, D.J., Owen, B. (2013) 'Comparison of global 3-D aviation emissions datasets.' Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 13(1) pp. 429-441.
Lamarque, J.F., Bond, T.C., Eyring, V., Granier, C., Heil, A., Klimont, Z., Lee, D., Liousse, C., Mieville, A., Owen, B., Schultz, M.G., Shindell, D., Smith, S.J., Stehfest, E., Van Aardenne, J., Cooper, O.R., Kainuma, M., Mahowald, N., McConnell, J.R., Naik, V., Riahi, K., Van Vuuren, D.P. (2010) 'Historical (1850-2000) gridded anthropogenic and biomass burning emissions of reactive gases and aerosols: Methodology and application.' Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 10(15) pp. 7017-7039.
Owen, B., Lee, D.S., Lim, L. (2010) 'Flying into the future: aviation emissions scenarios to 2050..' Environ Sci Technol, 44(7) pp. 2255-2260.
Lee, D.S., Fahey, D.W., Forster, P.M., Newton, P.J., Wit, R.C.N., Lim, L.L., Owen, B., Sausen, R. (2009) 'Aviation and global climate change in the 21st century.' Atmospheric Environment, 43(22-23) pp. 3520-3537.
Fleming, G., Malwitz, A., Balasubramanian, S., Roof, C., Grandi, F., Kim, B., Usdrowski, S., Elliff, T., Eyers, C., Horton, G., Lee, Q.Q.D., Owen, B. (2008) 'Trends in global noise and emissions from commercial aviation for 2000 through 2025.' ICAS Secretariat - 26th Congress of International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences 2008, ICAS 2008, 3pp. 2286-2294.
Peace, H., Maughan, J., Owen, B., Raper, D. (2006) 'Identifying the contribution of different airport related sources to local urban air quality..' Environ. Model. Softw., 21pp. 532-538.
Owen, B. (2005) 'Air quality impacts of speed-restriction zones for road traffic..' Sci Total Environ, 340(1-3) pp. 13-22.
Peace, H., Owen, B., Raper, D.W. (2004) 'Identifying the contribution of different urban highway air pollution sources..' Sci Total Environ, 334-335pp. 347-357.
Peace, H., Owen, B., Raper, D.W. (2004) 'Comparison of road traffic emission factors and testing by comparison of modelled and measured ambient air quality data..' Sci Total Environ, 334-335pp. 385-395.
Owen, B., Edmunds, H.A., Carruthers, D.J., Raper, D.W. (1999) 'Use of a new generation urban scale dispersion model to estimate the concentration of oxides of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide in a large urban area.' SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT, 235(1-3) pp. 277-291.
Rayfield, D., Longhurst, J.W.S., Watson, A.F.R., Hewison, T., Raper, D.W., Conlan, D.E., Owen, B. (1998) 'A methodology for estimation of vehicle emissions in an urban environment: An example from Greater Manchester.' Environmentalist, 18(3) pp. 175-182.
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Conference papers
Mourouzidis, C., Del Gatto, D., Adamidis, S., Villena Munoz, C., Lawson, C., Martinez Corzo, B., Leyland, P., Marsh, D., Lim, L., Owen, B., Terrenoire, E., Atinault, O., Legriffon, I., Huet, M., Schaefer, M., Plohr, M., Bake, S., Madden, P. (2023) 'Preliminary design of next generation Mach 1.6 supersonic business jets to investigate landing & take-off (LTO) noise and emissions - SENECA.' In 12th EASN International Conference on "Innovation in Aviation & Space for opening New Horizons". 2526. Barcelona, Spain, 18/10/2022 - 21/10/2022. Institute of Physics (IoP), pp. 012011-012011.
Rötger, T., Casas, G., Çelikel, A., Dörries, H., Lim, L., Owen, B., van Velzen, A., Linke, F., Lührs, B., Lutz, M., Radhakrishnan, K. (2022) 'Reduction of the environmental impact of aviation via optimisation of aircraft size/range and flight network.' In International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space to the Satisfaction of the European Citizens (11th EASN 2021). 1226. Salerno, 1/9/2021 - 3/9/2021. IOP Publishing, pp. 012045-012045.
Lim, L.L., Walker, K., Owen, B., Lee, D.S. (2015) 'Aviation impacts on climate: Where are we heading?.' 2015-January. pp. 176-180.
Lim, L.L., Lee, D.S., Owen, B., Skowron, A., Matthes,, S., Burkhardt,, U., Dietmüller,, S., Pitari,, G., Di Genova,, G., Iachetti,, D., Isaksen,, I., Søvde,, O.A. (2015) 'REACT4C: Simplified Mitigation Studies.' In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Transport, Atmosphere and Climate (TAC-4). Bad Kohlgrub, Germany, 22/6/2015 - 25/6/2015.
Carter, J.K., Owen, B. (2012) 'Use of Flight Track Data for Propulsion Efficiency Calculations.' In MMU Research and Development Day. Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK, 20/4/2012 - 20/4/2012.
Owen, B., Edmunds, H.A., Carruthers, D.J., Singles, R.J. (2000) 'Prediction of total oxides of nitrogen and nitrogen dioxide concentrations in a large urban area using a new generation urban scale dispersion model with integral chemistry model.' In 6th International Conference on Atmospheric Science and Applications to Air Quality. 34. BEIJING, PEOPLES R CHINA, 3/11/1998 - 5/11/1998. PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD, pp. 397-406.
Conlan, D.E., Raper, D.W., Owen, B. (1997) 'Air Quality Management - a challenge for large international airports?.' In 5th International Conference on Air Pollution - Modelling, Monitoring and Management (AIR POLLUTION V). BOLOGNA, ITALY, 16/9/1997 - 18/9/1997. Power, H., Tirabassi, T., Brebbia, C.A. (ed.) COMPUTATIONAL MECHANICS PUBLICATIONS LTD, pp. 79-88.
Conlan, D.E., Crumbley, A., Raper, D.W., Owen, B. (1997) 'The role of local authorities in developing Air Quality Management in the UK.' In 5th International Conference on Air Pollution - Modelling, Monitoring and Management (AIR POLLUTION V). BOLOGNA, ITALY, 16/9/1997 - 18/9/1997. Power, H., Tirabassi, T., Brebbia, C.A. (ed.) COMPUTATIONAL MECHANICS PUBLICATIONS LTD, pp. 69-78.
Owen, B., Raper, D.W., Longhurst, J.W.S., Conlan, D.E. (1996) 'Air quality management at European airports.' In 4th International Conference on Air Pollution - Monitoring, Simulation and Control (Air Pollution 96). TOULOUSE, FRANCE, 28/8/1996 - 30/8/1996. Caussade, B., Power, H., Brebbia, C.A. (ed.) COMPUTATIONAL MECHANICS PUBLICATIONS LTD, pp. 609-616.