ACTRIS (Aerosol, Clouds, and Trace gases Research Infrastructure) allows scientists around the world to study short-lived atmospheric components (aerosols, clouds, and trace gases of high variability in space and time) and their interactions, allowing them to make reliable atmospheric predictions ranging from short-term meteorological and health warnings to long-term evaluations of climate change. This will open the doors for investigators, industries, and countries to access key information about the state of the atmosphere, share the best investigative platforms in Europe, and use the necessary scientific knowledge to support policy development.

The objective of ACTRIS is to enhance and promote excellence in the observation and investigation of the earth system and provide information and knowledge in order to develop sustainable solutions to societal needs.

ACTRIS began its journey towards ACTRIS ERIC in 2011 by achieving important scientific and technical milestones that strive toward a deeper understanding of the factors that influence climate change and atmospheric contamination. Monitoring the spatial and temporal variability of short-lived atmospheric components from 80 observation platforms in Europe and around the world during more than a decade has not only provided an unprecedented view of the effectiveness of emission-reduction policies in Europe, but has also highlighted the complex feedback mechanisms that act on the climate system. Hundreds of investigators from around the world, as well as individuals in the private sector, have accessed the ACTRIS platforms (observation installations, atmospheric simulation cameras) in order to carry out new experiments with the purpose of augmenting scientific knowledge as a means to develop new instruments and training in new technologies. Each year, more than 5,000 users from 50 nations use data from ACTRIS in their investigations, which allows them to make reliable atmospheric predictions ranging from short-term meteorological and health warnings to long-term evaluations of climate change.

The European Commission has now made the decision to establish ACTRIS as a European Research Infrastructure Consortium, also known as ERIC. With the status of ERIC, ACTRIS is now legally recognised as a European Infrastructure of Investigation, which provides it with a stable legal structure.

Its establishment as ERIC emphasises the rapid progress of ACTRIS, which has evolved from a project-based network into a sophisticated and sustainable research infrastructure. Finland will be the host of the statutory headquarters will be located in and will also manage the general coordination of ACTRIS while Italy will manage access to ACTRIS services.

The eleven Spanish investigative organisations that contribute to ACTRIS ERIC, supported by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, are grouped together into a Mixed Investigation Unit made up of the Centre of Energetic, Environmental and Technological Investigations (CIEMAT), the Superior Council of Scientific Investigations (CSIC), the State Agency of Meteorology (AEMET), the University of Valencia, the University of Granada, the Barcelona Supercomputing Centre-Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS), the Valencia Community Centre of Environmental Studies of the Mediterranean (CEAM), the National Institute of Aerospace Technology ‘Esteban Terradas’ (INTA), the University of Valladolid, the University Miguel Hernández de Elche, and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia.  There are other investigative organisations also collaborating with ACTRIS and more will be able join in the future.

The National Installations of ACTRIS are distributed across the 17 countries of ACTRIS ERIC: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. Greece and the United Kingdom have expressed interest in joining at a later date.