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Climate link to shattered glass
Source: Agencies |
December 29, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
STUDYING the way glass or other brittle objects shatter can help scientists hone their weather forecasts and predictions of future climate, a study released yesterday says.
The study found that tiny particles of dust, released into the air when dirt is broken apart, follow similar fragmentation patterns as glass. Dust plays a crucial climate role because it can affect the amount of the sun's energy absorbed by the atmosphere.
Dust can also help with cloud formation and distribution of nutrients, such as iron that is vital for plants.
Some particles reflect solar energy, acting as cooling agents, while some trap extra heat.
For example, microscopic clay particles remain in the atmosphere for about a week, helping cool the atmosphere by reflecting heat from the sun back into space. Larger dust particles drop back to earth more quickly and tend to have a heating effect. The trick is to figure out how much of each type is in the atmosphere and the better the estimate, the more accurate the forecast.
Jasper Kok of the US National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, said his work suggested there could be several times more dust particles in the atmosphere than previously estimated.
"As small as they are, conglomerates of dust particles in soils behave the same way on impact as a glass dropped on a kitchen floor," Kok said in a statement with the release of his study in the latest issue of the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Knowing this pattern can help us put together a clearer picture of what our future climate will look like," he added.
The study found that tiny particles of dust, released into the air when dirt is broken apart, follow similar fragmentation patterns as glass. Dust plays a crucial climate role because it can affect the amount of the sun's energy absorbed by the atmosphere.
Dust can also help with cloud formation and distribution of nutrients, such as iron that is vital for plants.
Some particles reflect solar energy, acting as cooling agents, while some trap extra heat.
For example, microscopic clay particles remain in the atmosphere for about a week, helping cool the atmosphere by reflecting heat from the sun back into space. Larger dust particles drop back to earth more quickly and tend to have a heating effect. The trick is to figure out how much of each type is in the atmosphere and the better the estimate, the more accurate the forecast.
Jasper Kok of the US National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, said his work suggested there could be several times more dust particles in the atmosphere than previously estimated.
"As small as they are, conglomerates of dust particles in soils behave the same way on impact as a glass dropped on a kitchen floor," Kok said in a statement with the release of his study in the latest issue of the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Knowing this pattern can help us put together a clearer picture of what our future climate will look like," he added.
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