Aerosol climate element

Understanding the physical and chemical properties of marine aerosol particles is crucial because of the role these particles play in a number of atmospheric processes. Marine aerosols affect climate directly through scattering and absorption of radiation and indirectly as they can act as cloud condensation nuclei and thus influence the albedo of clouds. In addition, marine aerosol particles play an important role in the cycling of various elements through the atmosphere. 

Despite an imperfection of the present-day climate theory, the conclusion about an important climate-forming role of the atmospheric aerosol can be considered as quite reliable [1, 5, 24, 34]. The role of aerosol as a climatic system element is at least dual (i) it directly affects the radiation transfer conditions in the atmosphere, and (ii) it changes the extent, size, distribution and radiative properties of cloudiness. 

An entirely new level of sophistication—not only in experiments but also in modeling—will be required for particles, aerosols, and the associated radiation field sets. New mid-IR laser-based instrumentation and use of long-duration balloons have helped make major advances in observations. The balloons can sit in the upper stratosphere and then be lowered to the lower stratosphere with power from fuel cells and solar panels. The modeling elements are equally important it is necessary to test the model and its validity, and the model must link the measurements. The observations must be linked to trajectories, the trajectories must be initialized, and sources of specific chemicals must be identified along with the positions of those sources. Considerable progress has been made on observations and refinement of models to help explain low ozone loss at the mid-altitudes, the increase in UV dosage, the appearance of water vapor in the stratosphere, and possibly, of climate changes 50 million years ago. 

The climatic effect of the smoke aerosols is beyond current understanding because of the complex nature of the interactions involved. Aerosols can influence climate directly by changing Earth s radiation balance. They reflect sunlight back into space. Smoke particles also contain black (elemental) C, which may strongly absorb sunlight and thus cause a heating of the atmosphere and less penetration of... 

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