NASA scientists can observe greenhouse gases from space,
and they say soot, mostly from diesel engines, is causing as
much as 25% of all global warming, by reducing the ability of
snow and ice to reflect sunlight. "We suggest that soot
contributes to near worldwide melting of ice that is usually
attributed solely to global warming," say NASA's James
Hansen and Larissa Nazarenko.
They say soot has twice the effect on global warming as
carbon dioxide. This is actually not bad news, because while
it will take money, replacing diesel engines is a possibility,
while doing without fossil fuels is not?at least not for the
near future. Besides diesel engines, other sources of soot
come from the burning of wood, animal dung, and vegetable
oil.
Levels of airborne soot as high as about 100 parts per billion
have been found in the Alps, which have begun to melt in the
last few years. Parts of the world that do not produce much
soot can still be affected by it, since it can be carried by the
wind. NASA satellites can see a brown haze, caused by soot,
in rapidly developing countries, such as India and China.
There are lots of ways to learn about the future?and some
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