Iodine Oxoacids Formed in Oceans have Major Impact on Climate Details
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Molecular iodine, a major emission from the ocean, can quickly convert to iodic oxoacids even under weak daylight conditions.
Molecular iodine, a major emission from the ocean, can quickly convert to iodic oxoacids even under weak daylight conditions. These oxoacids lead rapidly to aerosol particles that significantly affect climate and human health.
Iodine-containing vapors that are emitted from oceans are a major source of aerosol particles. “Despite their importance to the climate, the formation of marine particles has been poorly understood,” says Siddharth Iyer, Postdoctoral Researcher in Aerosol Physics Laboratory at Tampere University.
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CLOUD at CERN reveals role of iodine acids in atmospheric aerosol formation Simulation of the marine atmosphere in the CLOUD chamber. Iodine emitted from the sea and ice is converted by ozone and sunlight into iodic acid and other compounds. These form new particles and increase clouds, warming the polar climate. Cosmic rays strongly enhance the particle formation rates. (Image: Helen Cawley)
In a paper published today in the journal Science, the CLOUD collaboration at CERN shows that aerosol particles made of iodic acid can form extremely rapidly in the marine boundary layer – the portion of the atmosphere that is in direct contact with the ocean. Aerosol particles in the atmosphere affect the climate, both directly and indirectly, but how new aerosol particles form and influence clouds and climate remains relatively poorly understood. This is particularly true of particles that form over the vast ocean.