Debris from Kuwaiti fires travels far.Sulfur and soot from the Kuwaiti oil fires The Kuwaiti oil fires were a result of the scorched earth policy of Iraqi military forces retreating from Kuwait in 1991 after conquering the country but being driven out by the military forces of the United States and other nations (see Gulf War). apparently floated clear around the globe, much farther than atmospheric researchers had thought likely, according to a team of scientists who detected unusual particles in the air over Wyoming last spring. In the Feb. 21 Geophysical Research Letters Geophysical Research Letters is a publication of the American Geophysical Union. GRL is the organization's only letters journal. Since its introduction in 1974, GRL has published only short research letters, typically 3-5 pages long, which focus on a specific discipline or , Terry Deshler of the University of Wyoming UW is a national research university prominent in the fields of environment and natural resource research, specializing in agriculture, energy, geology, and water resource related fields. in Laramie and David J. Hofmann of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Noun 1. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - an agency in the Department of Commerce that maps the oceans and conserves their living resources; predicts changes to the earth's environment; provides weather reports and forecasts floods and hurricanes and in Boulder, Colo., report that between March and June, balloon-borne sensors detected broad sheets of microscopic particles in concentrations about 10 times higher than normal. The largest of the particles measured roughly 6 microns in diameter, about one-tenth the width of a human hair. They appeared in layers high in the atmosphere, between 7 and 12 kilometers in altitude. In the same journal, Patrick J. Sheridan and Russell C. Schnell of the University of Colorado University of Colorado may refer to:
droplets, while 1 percent were clumps of carbon-rich soot particles that resembled soot collected over Kuwait. Researchers who traveled to Kuwait during the fires reported that smoke plumes rose only about 6 kilometers in height and that the particles were relatively large. Such factors led scientists to expect the debris would drop out of the atmosphere before traveling far--no more than a few thousand kilometers. But Deshler and his colleagues believe the particles they detected over Laramie did indeed come from the Kuwaiti fires. They note the blazes produced an enormous amount of sulfur dioxide, which turns into sulfuric acid in the atmosphere. Deshler suggests that thunderstorms thunderstorms a storm characterized by thunder and lightning caused by strong rising air currents; identified as agents of animal disease because of their involvement causing (1) spasmodic colic; (2) lightning strike; (3) injuries of cattle acquired in stampedes initiated by storms. over India could have lofted the fire particles into the upper atmosphere. From there, the particles could have ridden the jet stream in a quick trip across the Pacific. Deshler and Hofmann calculate that air sampled over Laramie on March 25 would have passed over Kuwait nine days previously. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion