The Air We Breathe: It Is Not As It Used To Be!

The earth’s long-term air temperature is controlled by small amounts of the trace gases carbon dioxide(co2), methane (ch4) and nitrous oxide (n2o) that hold heat radiating from the earth’s surface. the concentrations of these gases has been relatively constant for the past 10,000 years. but, over the past 200 years they have been steadily increasing from the production and combustion of fossil fuels, changes in forests and expanding agriculture. human manufactured refrigerants cfc-11 and cfc-12 are also greenhouse gases as well as chemicals that destroy stratospheric ozone to produce the south pole ozone hole. the production of cfc-11 and cfc-12 is banned under the 1987 montreal protocol. nevertheless, in the past four years, illicit production of cfc-11 was detected and a major source traced back to china. the chinese production appears to have ceased, but there is still some illicit cfc-11 production occurring elsewhere in the northern hemisphere. the 2020south pole ozone hole lasted longer and was nearly as strong as any ever recorded. this was due in most part to exceptionally cold temperatures in the stratosphere (colder than -780 c) required to produce polar stratospheric clouds upon which catalytic reactions induced by cfc-11 and cfc-12 destroy ozone. the above scientific results were obtained through long-term measurements of gases, aerosols and solar radiation from networks of sampling sites around the earth, balloon borne sensors and aircraft measurements. some measurements require part per trillion (ppt) accuracy. as such, these measurements require high quality calibration standards that must maintain their tractability for up to a century or more to ensure trends are not biased.the earth’s atmosphere and oceans are warming, ice fields are diminishing, sea levels rising and extremes in weather events are becoming more common.the summertime arctic ice cap could possibly disappear within 20-40 years. on a global scale, many water scarce areas will become drier, many croplands less productive, a few diseases more energetic and the flow of water from glaciers feeding asian rivers, unstable. together, all of these climate driven changes could lead to social unrest and large-scale movement of people away from the most affected areas.so, what can we do in face of global climate warming? mankind must implement massive adaption strategies, become more efficient in fossil fuel energy usage, develop sustainable wind and solar energy resources, reduce stresses on biological environments and reduce the disparity between rich and lower income countriea.the earth’s long-term air temperature is controlled by small amounts of the trace gases carbon dioxide (co2), methane (ch4) and nitrous oxide (n2o) that hold heat radiating from the earth’s surface. the concentrations of these gases has been relatively constant for the past 10,000 years. but, over the past 200 years they have been steadily increasing from the production and combustion of fossil fuels, changes in forests and expanding agriculture. human manufactured refrigerants cfc-11 and cfc-12 are also greenhouse gases as well as chemicals that destroy stratospheric ozone to produce the south pole ozone hole. the production of cfc-11 and cfc-12 is banned under the 1987 montreal protocol. nevertheless, in the past four years, illicit production of cfc-11 was detected and a major source traced back to china. the chinese production appears to have ceased, but there is still some illicit cfc-11 production occurring elsewhere in the northern hemisphere. the 2020south pole ozone hole lasted longer and was nearly as strong as any ever recorded. this was due in most part to exceptionally cold temperatures in the stratosphere (colder than -780 c) required to produce polar stratospheric clouds upon which catalytic reactions induced by cfc-11 and cfc-12 destroy ozone.

The Air We Breathe: It Is Not As It Used To Be!

The Earth’s long-term air temperature is controlled by small amounts of the trace gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) that hold heat radiating from the Earth’s surface. The concentrations of these gases has been relatively constant for the past 10,000 years. But, over the past 200 years they have been steadily increasing from the production and combustion of fossil fuels, changes in forests and expanding agriculture. Human manufactured refrigerants CFC-11 and CFC-12 are also greenhouse gases as well as chemicals that destroy stratospheric ozone to produce the South Pole Ozone Hole. The production of CFC-11 and CFC-12 is banned under the 1987 Montreal Protocol. Nevertheless, in the past four years, illicit production of CFC-11 was detected and a major source traced back to China. The Chinese production appears to have ceased, but there is still some illicit CFC-11 production occurring elsewhere in the northern hemisphere. The 2020South Pole Ozone hole lasted longer and was nearly as strong as any ever recorded. This was due in most part to exceptionally cold temperatures in the stratosphere (colder than -780 C) required to produce Polar Stratospheric Clouds upon which catalytic reactions induced by CFC-11 and CFC-12 destroy ozone. The above scientific results were obtained through long-term measurements of gases, aerosols and solar radiation from networks of sampling sites around the Earth, balloon borne sensors and aircraft measurements. Some measurements require part per trillion (ppt) accuracy. As such, these measurements require high quality calibration standards that must maintain their tractability for up to a century or more to ensure trends are not biased. The Earth’s atmosphere and oceans are warming, ice fields are diminishing, sea levels rising and extremes in weather events are becoming more common. The summertime Arctic ice cap could possibly disappear within 20-40 years. On a global scale, many water scarce areas will become drier, many croplands less productive, a few diseases more energetic and the flow of water from glaciers feeding Asian rivers, unstable. Together, all of these climate driven changes could lead to social unrest and large-scale movement of people away from the most affected areas. So, what can we do in face of global climate warming? Mankind must implement massive adaption strategies, become more efficient in fossil fuel energy usage, develop sustainable wind and solar energy resources, reduce stresses on biological environments and reduce the disparity between rich and lower income countries. The Earth’s long-term air temperature is controlled by small amounts of the trace gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) that hold heat radiating from the Earth’s surface. The concentrations of these gases has been relatively constant for the past 10,000 years. But, over the past 200 years they have been steadily increasing from the production and combustion of fossil fuels, changes in forests and expanding agriculture. Human manufactured refrigerants CFC-11 and CFC-12 are also greenhouse gases as well as chemicals that destroy stratospheric ozone to produce the South Pole Ozone Hole. The production of CFC-11 and CFC-12 is banned under the 1987 Montreal Protocol. Nevertheless, in the past four years, illicit production of CFC-11 was detected and a major source traced back to China. The Chinese production appears to have ceased, but there is still some illicit CFC-11 production occurring elsewhere in the northern hemisphere. The 2020South Pole Ozone hole lasted longer and was nearly as strong as any ever recorded. This was due in most part to exceptionally cold temperatures in the stratosphere (colder than -780 C) required to produce Polar Stratospheric Clouds upon which catalytic reactions induced by CFC-11 and CFC-12 destroy ozone. The above scientific results were obtained through long-term measurements of gases, aerosols and solar radiation from networks of sampling sites around the Earth, balloon borne sensors and aircraft measurements. Some measurements require part per trillion (ppt) accuracy. As such, these measurements require high quality calibration standards that must maintain their tractability for up to a century or more to ensure trends are not biased. The Earth’s atmosphere and oceans are warming, ice fields are diminishing, sea levels rising and extremes in weather events are becoming more common. The summertime Arctic ice cap could possibly disappear within 20-40 years. On a global scale, many water scarce areas will become drier, many croplands less productive, a few diseases more energetic and the flow of water from glaciers feeding Asian rivers, unstable. Together, all of these climate driven changes could lead to social unrest and large-scale movement of people away from the most affected areas. So, what can we do in face of global climate warming? Mankind must implement massive adaption strategies, become more efficient in fossil fuel energy usage, develop sustainable wind and solar energy resources, reduce stresses on biological environments and reduce the disparity between rich and lower income countries.