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Particulates or atmospheric particulate matter (see below for other names) are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air.The term aerosol refers to the particulate/air mixture, as opposed to the particulate matter alone, [1] though it is sometimes defined as a subset of aerosol terminology. [2]
Mist and fog are aerosols. An aerosol is a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets in air or another gas. [1] Aerosols can be generated from natural or human causes.The term aerosol commonly refers to the mixture of particulates in air, and not to the particulate matter alone. [2]
Bioaerosols (short for biological aerosols) are a subcategory of particles released from terrestrial and marine ecosystems into the atmosphere. They consist of both living and non-living components, such as fungi, pollen, bacteria and viruses. [1] Common sources of bioaerosols include soil, water, and sewage.
The proportion of the ocean surface turbulent enough to produce significant sea spray is called the whitecap fraction. [10] The only other production mechanism of sea spray in the open ocean is through direct wind action, where strong winds actually break the surface tension of the water and lift particles into the air. [10]
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles, suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. [1] Water or various other chemicals may compose the droplets and crystals.
CO 2 is sometimes called an air pollutant, because it is the main greenhouse gas responsible for climate change. [ 71 ] [ 72 ] This question of terminology has practical consequences, for example, in determining whether the U.S. Clean Air Act (which is designed to improve air quality) is deemed to regulate CO 2 emissions.
Water vapor is the "working medium" of the atmospheric thermodynamic engine which transforms heat energy from sun irradiation into mechanical energy in the form of winds. Transforming thermal energy into mechanical energy requires an upper and a lower temperature level, as well as a working medium which shuttles forth and back between both.
Aerosol pollution over northern India and Bangladesh (Satellite image by NASA) Cloud condensation nuclei (CCNs), also known as cloud seeds, are small particles typically 0.2 μm, or one hundredth the size of a cloud droplet. [1] CCNs are a unique subset of aerosols in the atmosphere on which water vapour condenses.