
via NASA
Israeli researcher claims his calculations show scientists have grossly underestimated the effects of air pollution.
The world’s scientific community has known for a long time that global warming is caused by manmade emissions in the form of greenhouse gases, while global cooling is caused by air pollution in the form of aerosols.
In a new study published in the journal Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem Prof. Daniel Rosenfeld argues that the degree to which aerosol particles cool the earth has been grossly underestimated.
Aerosols are tiny particles of many different materials that get into the air, like dust and vehicle exhaust. They cool our environment by enhancing the cloud cover that reflects the sun’s heat back to space.
Rosenfeld says his findings necessitate a recalculation of climate-change models to more accurately predict the pace of global warming.
He and his colleague Yannian Zhu from the Meteorological Institute of Shaanxi Province in China developed a new method that uses satellite images to calculate the effect of vertical winds as well as aerosol cloud droplet numbers. Until now, it was impossible to separate the effects of rising winds, which create the clouds, from the effects of aerosols, which determine clouds’ composition.
Using this new methodology, Rosenfeld and his colleagues were able to more accurately calculate aerosols’ cooling effects on the Earth. They discovered this effect is nearly two times higher than previously thought.
Good news or bad news?
But this finding does not necessarily mean we can stop worrying about global warming. Rosenfeld has several theories about why temperatures are rising despite the aerosol effect.
“If the aerosols indeed cause a greater cooling effect than previously estimated, then the warming effect of the greenhouse gases has also been larger than we thought, enabling greenhouse-gas emissions to overcome the cooling effect of aerosols,” Rosenfeld said.
Another hypothesis to explain why Earth is getting warmer even though aerosols have been cooling it down at an even a greater rate is a possible warming effect of aerosols when they lodge in “deep clouds” located 10 kilometers or more above the Earth.
Israel’s Space Agency and France’s National Centre for Space Studies have teamed up to develop new satellites that will be able to investigate this deep-cloud phenomenon, with Rosenfeld as its principal investigator.
Either way, the conclusion is the same: Current global climate predictions do not correctly take into account the significant effects of aerosols on clouds on Earth’s overall energy balance, Rosenfeld says.
Currently, scientists predict a 1.5-degree to 4.5-degree Celsius temperature increase by the end of the 21st century. Rosenfeld’s findings may help provide a more accurate diagnosis and prognosis of the Earth’s climate.
Learn more: We need to rethink everything we know about global warming
The Latest on: The effects of air pollution on global warming
via Google News
The Latest on: The effects of air pollution on global warming
- Is the Mediterranean Basin really a hotspot of environmental change?on March 1, 2021 at 6:23 am
The Mediterranean basin, which includes the Mediterranean Sea and the countries it borders, is often referred to as a hotspot for climate change and biodiversity. This image is used to illustrate the ...
- Your Car Can Make the Air Cleaner | Green Choiceon February 17, 2021 at 11:57 pm
As an internist, Gaurab Basu has always understood the link between the air his patients breathe and their health, but never more starkly than during the pandemic. Working just outside Boston, ...
- Effects of temperature on the behaviour and metabolism of an intertidal foraminifera and consequences for benthic ecosystem functioningon February 17, 2021 at 3:27 am
Intertidal species, living in a highly variable environment, are likely to be exposed to such heatwaves since they can be emerged for more than 6 h during a tidal cycle. Little is known, however, on ...
- Air Pollution Linked to Acute Increase in MI Mortalityon January 21, 2021 at 12:33 pm
In a new study, short-term exposure to ambient air pollution, specifically large and small particulate matter, and nitrogen dioxide was tied to an increased mortality risk from myocardial infarction.
- How Your Car Can Make the Air Cleaneron January 7, 2021 at 4:00 pm
Your car can make the air cleaner, Consumer Reports says, noting that buying a car with low or zero emissions helps reduce pollution and its damaging effects on health and the environment. CR's new ...
- How to improve air quality?on October 5, 2020 at 4:35 am
The Solar Impulse Label is granted to innovative solutions to air pollution that meet high standards of sustainability and profitability. Each solution goes through a strict assessment process ...
- Factories' Pollution & Other Causes of Global Warmingon August 16, 2020 at 7:10 pm
Human-caused pollution, from factories, fossil fuel combustion and other activities, is contributing to an enhanced greenhouse effect and global warming. (See References 1, p. 2, 3) Although the ...
- Ambient air pollution: Pollutantson July 28, 2020 at 7:43 am
Therefore, global cooperation is needed to address international flows and sources of air pollutants, complementary to local and regional efforts in air pollution management ... with a wide range of ...
- Solutions to global warmingon March 19, 2020 at 1:01 pm
How to stop global warming? Global warming is likely to be the greatest threat of the 21st century. Find out its causes and effects, but most importantly the solutions to prevent climate change. The ...
- The link between climate change and air pollutionon July 11, 2018 at 1:59 am
Global warming is accelerated by greenhouse gases caused by ... such as osteoporosis. In other words, the effects air pollution on health extend far beyond respiratory or cardiac disorders. According ...
via Bing News