Scientists this summer are taking one of the most detailed looks ever at the natural and manmade emissions that affect air quality in the Southeast, and their movement and chemical transformations within the atmosphere. The mission should help scientists determine the origin of the fine particles and how they contribute to the haziness in the region and affect regional air quality and temperature trends.
The cleanup of California’s tailpipe emissions over the last few decades has not only reduced ozone pollution in the Los Angeles area, it has also altered the pollution chemistry in the atmosphere, making the eye-stinging “organic nitrate” component of air pollution plummet, according to a new study.
A new study, led by NOAA and its Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, used a novel approach to trace methane in the Los Angeles basin back to its sources, and found that "extra" methane is likely coming from sources related to fossil fuels.
Emissions from oil and natural gas operations north of Denver are releasing gases into the air that could add to ozone pollution in the region.
Warmer air temperatures high above the Antarctic led to the second smallest seasonal ozone hole in 20 years, according to NOAA and NASA satellite measurements
A team of scientists from NOAA and the University of Colorado-CIRES will receive the governor’s Award for High-Impact Research for discoveries made during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill crisis.