image: This is the instrumented Airbus A340-600. view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Torsten Gehrlein (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany).
A study of black carbon particles in the lowermost stratosphere, measured by an instrument installed on a commercial airliner regularly traveling between Europe and the United States, finds that black carbon particles resulting from wildfires frequently reach the lower stratosphere, are larger than particles in background samples, and grow thick coatings rapidly, suggesting that particles resulting from wildfires may exert a radiative forcing impact on the lower stratosphere and influence regional climate.
Article #18-06868: "Strong impact of wildfires on the abundance and aging of black carbon in the lowermost stratosphere," by Jeannine Ditas et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Yafang Cheng, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany; tel: +49-6131-305-7200; e-mail: yafang.cheng@mpic.de
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