Currently employed as part of a UN Climate and Clean Air Coalition / Environmental Defence Fund project to investigate potential methane sources in the North Sea region as well as ensuring the smooth running of greenhouse gas instruments to measure methane and carbon dioxide in the Falklands and on board the James Clarke Ross. Part of the Methane Observations and Yearly Assessment (MOYA) project and will be heading to Bolivia in March 2019 to undertake aerial studies using the BAS twin-otter aircraft as a platform to measure methane fluxes over the Bolivian wetlands.
2014-17. University of East Anglia, Responsible for the project management and scientific development of a new sea-ice laboratory facility. https://www.uea.ac.uk/environmental-sciences/sea-ice-chamber
2012-14 working on Arctic methane emissions using isotopic signatures in carbon to identify sources of methane to the Arctic as part of the MAMM project (Methane in the Arctic, Measurement and Modelling)
2009-12 Part of the OPALE (Oxidant Production over Antarctica Land and its Export) project measuring snowpack optical properties and spectral solar radiation to calculate photochemical rates of nitrate depletion within the snow cover at Dome C on the Antarctic plataeu.
Other interests include habitable planetary ices and ice extent during the snowball earth event.
PhD in snowpack chemistry and MSci undergraduate degree in GeoSciences
Main research profile currently: Greenhouse gas emissions over the Arctic, UK and Southern Tropics.
Previously working on snow optical properties and pollution (such as black carbon) within snowpack on snow surface reflectance, snowpack chemistry and snow / ice as a habitat and rates of photochemistry occurring in snow and ice.
Minor ongoing research is looking into identifying absorbers in snowpack from measurements of optical properties, determining new terrestrial sites for Martian dust simulants and habitable zones in ice on other planets / moons.
Flow rate and source reservoir identification from airborne chemical sampling of the uncontrolled Elgin platform gas release
Lee, J. D., Mobbs, S. D., Wellpott, A., Allen, G., Bauguitte, S., Burton, R. R., Camilli, R., Coe, H., Fisher, R., France, J. L., Gallagher, M., Hopkins, J. R., Lanoiselle, M., Lewis, A. C., Lowry, D., Nisbet, E., Purvis, R., O’Shea, S., Pyle, J. A. & Ryerson, T. B., 27 Mar 2018, In : Atmospheric Measurement Techniques. 11, 3, p. 1725-1739
Diurnal, seasonal, and annual trends in tropospheric CO in Southwest London during 2000–2015: Wind sector analysis and comparisons with urban and remote sites
Hernández-Paniagua, I. Y., Lowry, D., Clemitshaw, K. C., Palmer, P. I., Fisher, R. E., France, J. L., Mendoza, A., O’Doherty, S., Forster, G., Lanoisellé, M. & Nisbet, E. G., 17 Jan 2018, In : Atmospheric Environment. 177, p. 262-274
A cautionary tale: A study of a methane enhancement over the North Sea
Cain, M., Warwick, N., Fisher, R., Lowry, D., Lanoiselle, M., Nisbet, E., France, J., Pitt, J., O’Shea, S., Bower, K., Allen, G., Illingworth, S. M., Manning, A. J., Bauguitte, S., Pisso, I. & Pyle, J., 16 Aug 2017, In : Journal of Geophysical Research – Atmospheres. 122, 14, p. 7630-7645 , 10.1002/2017JD026626
Evaluating methane inventories by isotopic analysis in the London region
Zazzeri, G., Lowry, D., Fisher, R. E., France, J. L., Lanoisellé, M., Grimmond, C. S. B. & Nisbet, E. G., 7 Jul 2017, In : Scientific Reports. 7, p. 1-13 , 4854
Are the Fenno-Scandinavian Arctic wetlands a significant regional source of formic acid?
Jones, B. T., Muller, J., O’Shea, S., Bacak, A., Allen, G., Gallagher, M., Bower, K., Breton, M. L., Bannan, T. J., Bauguitte, S., Pyle, J., Lowry, D., Fisher, R., France, J., Nisbet, E., Shallcross, D. & Percival, C., 22 Jun 2017, In : Atmosphere. 8, 7, p. 1-18 , 112Article
Measurement of the 13C isotopic signature of methane emissions from northern European wetlands
Fisher, R. , France, J. , Lowry, D. , Lanoiselle, M. , Brownlow, R. , Pyle, J. , Cain, M. , Warwick, N. , Skiba, U. , Drewer, J. , Dinsmore, K. , Leeson, S. , Bauguitte, S. , Wellpott, A. , O’Shea, S. , Allen, G. , Gallagher, M. , Pitt, J. , Percival, C. , Bower, K. & 9 others , Mar 2017, In : Global Biogeochemical Cycles. 31, 3, p. 605–623Article
Methane mole fraction and δ13C above and below the trade wind inversion at Ascension Island in air sampled by aerial robotics
Brownlow, R., Lowry, D., Thomas, R., Fisher, R., France, J., Cain, M., Richardson, T., Greatwood, C., Freer, J., Pyle, J. & Nisbet, E., 28 Nov 2016, In : Geophysical Research Letters. 43, 22, p. 11893-11902Letter
Carbon isotopic signature of coal-derived methane emissions to the atmosphere: from coalification to alteration
Zazzeri, G., Lowry, D., Fisher, R., France, J., Lanoiselle, M., Kelly, B. F. J., Necki, J. M., Iverach, C. P., Ginty, E., Zimnoch, M., Jasek, A. & Nisbet, E., 3 Nov 2016, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 16, 21, p. 13669-13680
Rising atmospheric methane: 2007–2014 growth and isotopic shift
Nisbet, E. , Dlugokencky, E. J. , Manning, M. R. , Lowry, D. , Fisher, R. , France, J. , Michel, S. E. , Miller, J. B. , White, J. W. C. , Vaughn, B. , Bousquet, P. , Pyle, J. A. , Warwick, N. , Cain, M. , Brownlow, R. , Zazzeri, G. , Lanoiselle, M. , Manning, A. C. , Gloor, E. , Worthy, D. E. J. & 4 others , 26 Sep 2016, In : Global Biogeochemical Cycles. 30, 9, p. 1356-1370
Marked long-term decline in ambient CO mixing ratio in SE England, 1997-2014: evidence of policy success in improving air quality
Lowry, D., Lanoisellé, M. E., Fisher, R. E., Martin, M., Fowler, C. M. R., France, J. L., Hernández-Paniagua, I. Y., Novelli, P. C., Sriskantharajah, S., O’Brien, P., Rata, N. D., Holmes, C. W., Fleming, Z. L., Clemitshaw, K. C., Zazzeri, G., Pommier, M., McLinden, C. A. & Nisbet, E. G., 23 May 2016, In : Scientific Reports. 6, p. 1-12 , 25661
Atmospheric constraints on the methane emissions from the East Siberian Shelf
Berchet, A., Bousquet, P., Pison, I., Locatelli, R., Chevallier, F., Paris, J-D., Dlugokencky, E. J., Laurila, T., Hatakka, J., Viisanen, Y., Worthy, D. E. J., Nisbet, E., Fisher, R., France, J., Lowry, D., Ivakhov, V. & Hermansen, O., 30 Mar 2016, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 16, 6, p. 4147-4157
Assessing Connectivity Between an Overlying Aquifer and a Coal Seam Gas Resource Using Methane Isotopes, Dissolved Organic Carbon and Tritium
Iverach, C. P., Cendón, D. I., Hankin, S. I., Lowry, D., Fisher, R. E., France, J. L., Nisbet, E. G., Baker, A. & Kelly, B. F. J., 4 Nov 2015, In : Scientific Reports. 5, p. 1-11 , 15996
Atmospheric nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2) at Dome C, East Antarctica, during the OPALE campaign
Roscoe, H. K., Kukui, A., Savarino, J., France, J., King, M., Legrand, M. & Preunkert, S., 17 Jul 2015, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 15, p. 7859-7875
Plume mapping and isotopic characterisation of anthropogenic methane sources
Zazzeri, G., Lowry, D., Fisher, R. E., France, J. L., Lanoisellé, M. & Nisbet, E. G., 1 Jun 2015, In : Atmospheric Environment. 110, p. 151-162
Diurnal, seasonal, and annual trends in atmospheric CO2 at southwest London during 2000-2012: Wind sector analysis and comparison with Mace Head, Ireland
Hernández-Paniagua, I. Y., Lowry, D., Clemitshaw, K. C., Fisher, R. E., France, J. L., Lanoisellé, M., Ramonet, M. & Nisbet, E. G., 1 Mar 2015, In : Atmospheric Environment. 105, p. 138-147
Methane and carbon dioxide fluxes and their regional scalability for the European Arctic wetlands during the MAMM project in summer 2012
O’Shea, S. J. , Allen, G. , Gallagher, M. W. , Bower, K. , Illingworth, S. M. , Muller, J. B. A. , Jones, B. T. , Percival, C. J. , Bauguitte, S. J. B. , Cain, M. , Warwick, N. , Quiquet, A. , Skiba, U. , Drewer, J. , Dinsmore, K. , Nisbet, E. G. , Lowry, D. , Fisher, R. E. , France, J. L. , Aurela, M. & 7 others , 10 Dec 2014, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 14, 23, p. 13159-13174
Measurements of OH and RO2 radicals at Dome C, East Antarctica
Kukui, A., Legrand, M., Preunkert, S., Frey, M., Loisil, R., Gil Roca, J., jourdain, B., King, M., France, J. & Ancellet, G., 26 Nov 2014, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 14, 22, p. 12373-12392
Role of nitrite in the photochemical formation of radicals in the snow
Jacobi, H. W., Kleffmann, J., Villena, G., Wiesen, P., King, M., France, J., Anastasio, C. & Staebler, R., 7 Jan 2014, In : Environmental Science and Technology. 48, 1, p. 165-172
Published
Influence of grain shape on light penetration in snow: The Cryosphere
Libois, Q., Picard, G., France, J. L., Arnaud, L., Dumont, M., Carmagnola, C. M. & King, M. D., 1 Jan 2013, In : The Cryosphere. 7, 6, p. 1803-1818
The diurnal variability of atmospheric nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2) above the Antarctic Plateau driven by atmospheric stability and snow emissions
Frey, M. M., Brough, N., France, J. L., Anderson, P. S., Traulle, O., King, M. D., Jones, A. E., Wolff, E. W. & Savarino, J., 2013, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 13, 6, p. 3045-3062
Decreased albedo, e-folding depth and photolytic OH radical and NO2 production with increasing black carbon content in Arctic snow
Reay, H. J., France, J. L. & King, M. D., 12 Jun 2012, In : Journal of Geophysical Research – Atmospheres. 117, , ARTN D00R20
Carbonaceous species and humic like substances (HULIS) in Arctic snowpack during OASIS field campaign in Barrow
Voisin, D., Jaffrezo, J-L., Houdier, S., Barret, M., Cozic, J., King, M. D., France, J. L., Reay, H. J., Grannas, A., Kos, G., Ariya, P. A., Beine, H. J. & Domine, F., 5 May 2012, In : Journal of Geophysical Research. 117, p. – , D00R19
Soluble chromophores in marine snow, seawater, sea ice and frost flowers near Barrow, Alaska
Beine, H., Anastasio, C., Domine, F., Douglas, T., Barret, M., France, J., King, M., Hall, S. & Ullmann, K., 23 Mar 2012, In : Journal of Geophysical Research. 117, p. – , D00R15
Hydroxyl radical and NOx production rates, black carbon concentrations and light-absorbing impurities in snow from field measurements of light penetration and nadir reflectivity of onshore and offshore coastal Alaskan snow
France, J. L., Reay, H. J., King, M. D., Voisin, D., Jacobi, H. W., Domine, F., Beine, H., Anastasio, C., MacArthur, A. & Lee-Taylor, J., 9 Mar 2012, In : Journal of Geophysical Research. 117, p. – , D00R12
The effect of measurement geometry on recording solar radiation attenuation in snowpack (e-folding depth) using fibre-optic probes
France, J. & King, M., 2012, In : Journal of Glaciology. 58, 208, p. 417-418 , 10.3189/2012JoG11J227
Published
Calculations of in-snow NO2 and OH radical photochemical production and photolysis rates: A field and radiative-transfer study of the optical properties of Arctic (Ny-Alesund, Svalbard) snow
France, J. L., King, M., Lee-Taylor, J., Beine, H. J., Ianniello, A., Domine, F. & MacArthur, A., 1 Nov 2011, In : Journal of Geophysical Research. 116, p. – , F04013
Snow optical properties at Dome C (Concordia), Antarctica; implications for snow emissions and snow chemistry of reactive nitrogen
France, J. L., King, M. D., Frey, M. M., Erbland, J., Picard, G., Preunkert, S., MacArthur, A. & Savarino, J., 21 Sep 2011, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 11, 18, p. 9787-9801
Snow optical properties at Dome C (Concordia), Antarctica; implications for snow emissions and snow chemistry of reactive nitrogen
France, J. L., King, M. D., Frey, M. M., Erbland, J., Picard, G., Preunkert, S., MacArthur, A. & Savarino, J., 2011, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 11, 18, p. 9787-9801
A photohabitable zone in the martian snowpack? A laboratory and radiative-transfer study of dusty water-ice snow
France, J. L., King, M. D. & MacArthur, A., May 2010, In : Icarus. 207, 1, p. 133-139
The importance of considering depth-resolved photochemistry in snow: a radiative-transfer study of NO2 and OH production in Ny-Alesund (Svalbard) snowpacks
France, J. L., King, M. D. & Lee-Taylor, J., 2010, In : Journal of Glaciology. 56, 198, p. 655-663
Hydroxyl (OH) radical production rates in snowpacks from photolysis of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and nitrate (NO3-)
France, JL., King, M. & Lee-Taylor, J., 1 Jan 2007, In : Atmospheric Environment. 41, 26, p. 5502-5509
Surprisingly small HONO emissions from snow surfaces at Browning Pass, Antarctica
Beine, HJ., Amoroso, A., Domine, F., King, M., Nardino, M., Ianniello, A. & France, JL., 1 Jan 2006, In : Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 6, p. 2569-2580A
Measurement and modelling of UV radiation penetration and photolysis rates of nitrate and hydrogen …
King, M., France, JL., Fisher, FN. & Beine, HJ., 2005, In : Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry. 176,
Offshore gas fields worldwide are major sources of methane emissions. Developing reliable methods to locate emissions and pinpoint sources is critical for quantifying the volume of methane emissions from gas fields across the world.
MOYA is a major NERC-funded project to study the global budget of atmospheric methane, the balance between sources and loss processes, and to understand what is changing to cause the increase in methane currently observed.
Dr James France has just completed a week-long flying campaign using one of the BAS Twin Otters fitted with scientific instrumentation. Find out more about his experience.
Scientists embark on a three-week flying campaign today (23 April) to study methane emissions from gas fields in the southern North Sea. Using specialised scientific equipment, on board one of […]
