The large number of tiny organic aerosols floating in the atmosphere emitted from tailpipes and trees alike share enough common characteristics as a group that scientists can generalize their makeup and how they change in the atmosphere.
The groundbreaking research by Colette Heald, assistant professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University, was highlighted this month on the cover of the American Geophysical Union's prestigious Geophysical Research Letters.
"The hope is that we can start to accurately represent organic aerosols in climate models so we can address how they impact climate and air quality, and particularly the issue of how much is natural and how much comes from human activities," Heald said. "What we're really trying to get at is the composition what's in the atmosphere, how is it changing and where does it have an environmental impact? Many of the compounds in the atmosphere are really short lived, so the picture changes quickly."
The atmosphere contains many different kinds of aerosols such as dust and sulfate as well as organic aerosols. These organic aerosols come from many different sources, including fossil fuel emission and wildfires. Fungi, bacteria and pollen are among the major biologically produced organic aerosol particles. Further complicating the picture are atmospheric gases that change over time and can become aerosols in the atmosphere.
But for climate models, the differences may not matter as much as previously thought.
Heald plotted hydrogen-to-carbon and oxygen-to-carbon ratios from observations of aerosols in the laboratory and in field experiments from such places as Mexico City, the Amazon and Los Angeles. Even though the studies looked at different aerosols from very different environments, she could classify them as a group based on their overall oxygen and hydrogen content.
Oxygen also plays a role in changing the chemical makeu
'/>"/>
| Contact: Emily Wilmsen Emily.Wilmsen@colostate.edu 970-491-2336 Colorado State University Source:Eurekalert |
Related biology news :
1. Colorado State University biochemists study how chromosomes unravel to let genes do their jobs
2. A howling success: The fifth howler monkey census on Barro Colorado Island
3. New University of Colorado paper shows novel way to study human inflammatory disease
4. University of Colorado study shows natural antioxidants give top barn swallows a leg on competitors
5. U. of Colorado scientists create tiny RNA molecule with big implications for lifes origins
6. IADR Wilmer Souder Award presented to University of Colorado professor
7. Avian flu becoming more resistant to antiviral drugs, says University of Colorado study
8. Colorado Rocky Mountain Region: A Geological Cornucopia
9. Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar receives Soil Stewardship Award
10. University of Colorado at Boulder awarded $1 million for biofuels research
11. Colorado Engineering Firms Win NASA Grant to Develop Innovative Insulation for Next Generation Spacecraft - Super-Insulation May Allow Future Energy Efficient Appliances
 |
| Copyright © 2003-2012 Bio-Medicine. All rights reserved. ABOUT | CONTACT US | DISCLAIMER | PRIVACY POLICY | TERMS AND CONDITIONS |  |