The tropopause region and the adjacent layers of the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere (UTLS) are very sensitive to changes of the chemical composition and the climate. However, the knowledge about this region is still limited. Long-term observations of atmospheric chemical composition, temperature, aerosols and clouds by IAGOS help documenting changes in this sensitive atmospheric region, better understanding the cycles of climate-active gases like water vapour and ozone, and investigating the impact of climate change. The regular measurement of the vertical distribution of air quality relevant components like NO_x, O₃, and particulate matter provide essential information for the assessment of global air quality. The operational measurement of atmospheric trace constituents on board of passenger aircraft have created a dense network of collaborations with European research infrastructures, aviation industry, airlines, and the European Earth observation programme Copernicus.

ENVRI-FAIR is a recently launched project of the European Union’s Horizon 2020, connecting the cluster of the European Environmental Research Infrastructures (ENVRI) to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). Its overarching goal is to integrate the data and services of these infrastructures and build a scientific basis for the analysis of the physical, chemical and biological processes of the complex Earth system, and connect the ENVRI cluster to the EOSC.

Well advanced flagship research infrastructures like IAGOS lead the development and implementation of the necessary information technology tools and methods and provide support and guidance to the so far less mature infrastructures.