Questions tagged [atmospheric-chemistry]
The atmospheric-chemistry tag has no usage guidance.
68
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What is the history of atmospheric O₂ concentration?
(This is about O₂, not CO₂)
How did the concentration of oxygen change?
Over geologic time frames since plants began to produce it,
and during the time since the carbon dioxide increase caused by ...
2
votes
1answer
36 views
Origin of Sulphuric Acid in the Atmosphere
I often see claims that volcanic emissions of sulphur dioxide, on Earth and on the planet Venus, creates sulphuric acid when it combines with water vapour. It doesn't. Sulphur dioxide creates ...
-2
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1answer
79 views
What portion of global warming is caused by radioactive CO2 produced from cosmic rays?
The Earth's magentic field has been weaking recently, and the sun's magnetic field has been weaking recently, and it is a known fact that when either of these magnetic fields weaken (let alone both of ...
6
votes
1answer
99 views
What is brown carbon?
There is a lot of interest in brown carbon in the atmospheric science community these days. There is a paper in the journal, "Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics" titled, "Black carbon or brown carbon? ...
4
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1answer
47 views
What exactly are “ambient aerosols”?
I see this term being used everywhere, but I have not been able to find a formal definition for "ambient aerosols".
0
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1answer
69 views
Which are the mechanisms of the correlation between atmospheric carbon dioxid and global warming/cooling?
In the end of glacial periods there seems to be an increasing release of carbon dioxide as the global warming increase and at the end of these global warming periods the content of carbon dioxide in ...
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0answers
84 views
Can airplanes trigger rain?
A lady was telling me that the lower clouds were contrails left from plane exhausts. I looked up and there were none I could see in the sky she pointed to Stratocumulus Clouds. I did not want to tell ...
3
votes
0answers
161 views
Where does molecular hydrogen in the atmosphere come from?
This figure from Wikipedia's Atmosphere of Earth shows a hydrogen fraction of 0.000055 percent by volume.
Question: Where does molecular hydrogen in the atmosphere come from?
Does this come directly ...
1
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1answer
51 views
Is weathering of rock a primary means of $\text{CO}_2$ scrubbing on primordial Earth?
I read somewhere that the reason Venus has a runaway greenhouse effect and Earth doesn't is because Venus failed to develop tectonic plates and instead formed a full tectonic plate enveloping the ...
2
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1answer
116 views
Stratosphere height vs. Temperature based on ozone concentration
Why does temperature increase as height increases in the stratosphere (15 km - 60 km above earth), when the ozone molecules are most concentrated at about 25 km?
2
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0answers
26 views
The differences on the atmospheric transportation for various trace metal in atmosphere
I have known that the atmospheric lifetimes of chemical species were highly dependent on their physicochemical properties. For example, $SO_2$ might exist for 5-8 days, while $NO_2$ could only exist ...
7
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1answer
159 views
Is there an atmospheric hydrogen cycle?
There are various physical, chemical and biological processes that free up hydrogen from molecules (often hydrocarbons or water).
Once in the atmosphere, the hydrogen is lost to space (the Earth's ...
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0answers
44 views
To what extent does lightning produced NOx end up in the atmopsheric boundary layer?
Lightning produced NO$_{x}$ (emitted as NO but quickly converted to NO$_{2}$) can be one of the major sources of atmospheric NO$_{x}$ in the tropics [1]. Estimates of emissions per flash range from 10 ...
4
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0answers
61 views
How is the vertical distribution of water vapor changing?
In this publication about data assimilation and observations (paywall alert) in the chapter General Concepts in Meteorology and Dynamics (by Andrew Charlton-Perez, William Lahoz, Richard Swinbank, ...
4
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0answers
58 views
What are the benefits of direct sun viewing spectrometer over a backscatter measuring spectrometer to quantify trace gases in the atmosphere?
I am using a Pandora spectrometer and a MAX-DOAS spectrometer to quantify the amount of formaldehyde (HCHO) present in the troposphere and stratosphere in Fairbanks, Alaska. Both the spectrometers use ...
3
votes
1answer
544 views
How to calculate the solar radiation at any place, any time
The solar radiation is one of the important factors controlling the formation of $O_3$, and thereby impacting the levels of various secondary species in the atmosphere.
However, in the campaign of ...
1
vote
1answer
27 views
Can the Air Mass Factor (AMF) be negative?
I am using a untraviolet-visible spectrometer to measure Vertical Column Densities (VCDs) of trace gases up to the stratosphere. It is physically impossible to have negative VCDs. I have observed some ...
1
vote
1answer
127 views
Does “Arctic Greening” mean an increase in the spatial extent of vegetation, an increase in particular types of vegetation, or both?
I am trying to study the impact of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) on the atmospheric chemistry of the Arctic Region which has been said to be "greening", by taking HCHO as a proxy.
3
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0answers
65 views
Do NO2 and O3 titrate each other out in the atmosphere?
Here is a plot of the vertical column densities of NO2 and O3 from an ultraviolet-visible spectrometer in Fairbanks, Alaska. It is interesting to see that when NO2 dips, O3 rises, and vice versa. Also,...
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0answers
53 views
The difficulties for the simulation of atmospheric metals
Atmospheric metals usually reside in aerosols with complex source origins. The concentrations distribution of metals especially for those with high toxicity (Pb, Cd, Ni, V) should be informative for ...
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0answers
34 views
How to analyze this data showing atomospheric CO2, CH4 and tempertures obtain from an ice sample?
Here is the chart:
My questions are:
Is the atmosphere in equilibrium over this record?
how would I determine what the maximum and minimum values for each
record is (approximation).
Is there a ...
10
votes
2answers
165 views
A rough picture about the ground-level ammonia (NH3)
Ammonia is the only alkaline gas in the atmosphere. It is one of the key features to control the acidity of aerosols and the formation of ammonium salts.
In the environment of $NH_3$-rich and $NH_3$-...
4
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2answers
328 views
Can I use diamonds as fossil fuel?
Aside from cultural implications (correct me if I'm wrong but artificial diamonds are not so hard to obtain, right?) diamonds are pure carbon and are more unstable than graphite. So, why not use ...
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2answers
198 views
How did CO₂ originate on Earth before there was life?
To start life there has to be $\ce{CO2}$.
$\ce{Solar energy + 6CO2 + 6H2O -> C6H12O6 (sugars) + 6O2}$
$C_6H_{12}O_{6} + O_2 \longrightarrow H_2O + {CO}_2 + \text{Energy}$
So to start this cycle, ...
1
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1answer
107 views
What's the difference between uptake and adsorption of gas into aerosols
In the area of atmospheric chemistry, I have learned that the heterogeneous oxidation of SO2 is one of the important pathways for sulfate formation. The reactions of SO2 oxidation in mineral, soot ...
7
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1answer
259 views
Why is the Earth's shadow blue?
After every sunset, once the sun is gone, I always enjoy seen the belt of venus rising in the other side, followed by the Earth's shadow.
This is a picture I took (you will find better ones online). ...
3
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1answer
65 views
The influence of special emissions (possibly coal mining activity) on particulate matters
Based on multiple site sampling of airborne $PM_{2.5}$ and $PM_{10}$ , the elemental concentrations of the trace elements were analyzed.
I have found out in the site near surface coal mining zone ...
5
votes
1answer
80 views
What controls the tendency of trace elements in different particle size fractions?
Trace element atmospheric particles are introduced from different sources, with both anthropogenic and natural origins.
By analyzing the concentration levels of 18 elements in samples of $PM_{2.5}$ ...
3
votes
0answers
87 views
The factors should be considered to determine one specific pollutant originated from regional transportation?
Ideally, one pollutant (e.g. organic carbon, heavy metals, sulfate) should be the mixed result of local emissions and regional transportation.
To quantify the contribution of local emissions is of ...
3
votes
1answer
91 views
What control the atmospheric lifetime of different metals in aerosols?
Background
I'm analysing the metallic elements in $PM_{2.5}$ to identify their possible anthropogenic sources for the study area.
A total of 19 metallic elements were investigated including dust-...
0
votes
2answers
55 views
calculation monocationic elements
How to calculate of the number of monocationic millimoles?
If I have concentrations of: $SiO_2$, $TiO_2$, $K_2O$, $MgO$, $MnO$, $Na_2O$, etc.
How can I get $Na^+$, $Mg^{2+}$, $Mn^{2+}$ ..?
This is ...
2
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0answers
25 views
Is there a conceptual diurnal model for ozone profile?
So i know that there are diurnal patterns for virtual potential temperature that can be described conceptually (such as $\frac{\partial \theta_v}{\partial z}\approx 0$ in the mixed layer and $\frac{\...
4
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0answers
96 views
What are 'sulphate particles' in the context of atmospheric chemistry?
This informative answer describes some processes in atmospheric chemistry and mentions "sulphate particles".
Actually I realize that I don't know what a 'sulphate particle' really is, though I've ...
4
votes
1answer
201 views
How can scientists measure chemical composition on other planets?
How can scientists measure chemical composition (oxygen, nitrogen etc) and temperature on other planets without being there?
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0answers
52 views
How can the hydrosphere be properly used to reduce the load on the lithosphere [closed]
The earth is made up of 70% hydrosphere and 30% lithosphere.The space of lithosphere is continually used and it seems there is a threat to a balance ecosystem.Describe how the hydrosphere can be make ...
8
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3answers
5k views
ppmV versus μmol/mol for atmospheric CO2 - how to convert?
For a uniform mixture of ideal gases, I think that the concentration of a gas reported in parts per million by volume (ppmV) and micro-moles per mole (μmol/mol) would be the same.
When I see ...
7
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1answer
162 views
Persistence time of ozone
Ozone is formed in the upper atmosphere by ultraviolet light, and broken down by ultraviolet, spontaneous reactions and artificial pollutants among other things.
Suppose there were no artificial ...
7
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1answer
67 views
How to relate the backward trajectories with offline particular samples?
To correlate chemicals in aerosols emanating from certain sample points, backward trajectory analysis is usually applied for identifying the potential geographical source region.
In this figure ...
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0answers
21 views
What is meant by controlling and reacting factor? [duplicate]
I'm interested in issues related to Global warming and therefore started to read about it from this website -->> link
As I was reading I got stuck in the third paragraph of ...
3
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1answer
75 views
How would this experiment's different particle types produce atmospheric reflectivity?
The MIT Technology Review news item Harvard Scientists Moving Ahead on Plans for Atmospheric Geoengineering Experiments discusses a proposed experiment to study in a carefully controlled way the ...
3
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0answers
83 views
What geographical areas are NOx sensitive/limited (with regard to ozone)?
Have there been any air quality modeling studies regarding the locations where ozone is considered "NOx limited" (increasing NOx increases ozone) or "NOx sensitive" (decreasing NOx increases ozone)? ...
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0answers
34 views
Is there any method to analysis the variation of chemical species removing the meteorology condition
Here is my question. The concentration of atmospheric species is decided by three major components:
The source related to natural or anthropology activities.
The chemical pathway of the formation ...
7
votes
1answer
412 views
What “g” would be needed to keep helium on Earth?
I know that helium is a very light and rare gas on Earth because Earths gravity is not strong enough to keep it. Instead, helium and hydrogen are rising through the atmosphere and escape into outer ...
6
votes
2answers
82 views
Does hydroxyl radical chemistry in air quality models create numerical stability problems?
Atmospheric mixing ratios of the hydroxyl radical have relatively short lifespans (on the order of microseconds). When modeling air quality or the weather, the time step is usually much larger than ...
6
votes
2answers
198 views
How to understand the bizarre high level for both PM2.5 and Ozone
Background
Eastern China now (2017.01) are suffering severe haze with striking concentration of PM2.5.
Haze, with low visibility and complex chemical components threatens billions of persons' health. ...
4
votes
1answer
69 views
The higher value range for the same satellite product (NO2_OMI_TEMIS)
I'm dealing with NO2 column density of troposphere, and my data source is TEMIS.
The NO2 level3 data can be derived from the original information of OMI instrument.
I have downloaded two types of ...
6
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2answers
4k views
Is oxygen spread equally on Earth's surface?
We know that oxygen comes from trees and plants (photosynthesis), so in the jungle where there are a lot of trees you would expect more oxygen than in the desert where there are no trees. Walking in ...
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1answer
3k views
Why is the sky bluer in winter than in summer?
I don't know why, but I have noticed my whole life that the sky's blue color seems saturated in winter and sort of pale, milky, and washed out in the summer. Does it have to do with the angle of the ...
7
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1answer
850 views
Why is it colder in the mountains than at sea level?
I have heard numerous reasons why that is. I just want to know which one is right.
4
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1answer
304 views
What is principle of inverse modeling?
I read a few paper related to emission inventory talking about the inverse modeling. It was another method to estimate the emission from ground(called top-down ...
