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Journal ArticleDOI

The Influence of Pollution on the Shortwave Albedo of Clouds

S. Twomey
- 01 Jul 1977 - 
- Vol. 34, Iss: 7, pp 1149-1152
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TLDR
In this article, it was shown that pollution can increase the reflectance (albedo) of clouds; by increasing the absorption coefficient it acts to decrease the reflectances, and that the former effect (brightening of the clouds in reflection, hence climatically a cooling effect) dominates for thin to moderately thick clouds.
Abstract
By increasing droplet concentration and thereby the optical thickness of a cloud, pollution acts to increase the reflectance (albedo) of clouds; by increasing the absorption coefficient it acts to decrease the reflectance. Calculations suggest that the former effect (brightening of the clouds in reflection, hence climatically a cooling effect) dominates for thin to moderately thick clouds, whereas for sufficiently thick clouds the latter effect (climatically a warming effect) can become dominant.

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Planetary boundaries: Exploring the safe operating space for humanity

TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a new approach to global sustainability in which they define planetary boundaries within which they expect that humanity can operate safely. But the proposed concept of "planetary boundaries" lays the groundwork for shifting our approach to governance and management, away from the essentially sectoral analyses of limits to growth aimed at minimizing negative externalities, toward the estimation of the safe space for human development.
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Organic aerosol and global climate modelling: a review

TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed existing knowledge with regard to organic aerosol (OA) of importance for global climate modelling and defined critical gaps needed to reduce the involved uncertainties, and synthesized the information to provide a continuous analysis of the flow from the emitted material to the atmosphere up to the point of the climate impact of the produced organic aerosols.
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The MODIS Aerosol Algorithm, Products and Validation

TL;DR: In this article, the spectral optical thickness and effective radius of the aerosol over the ocean were validated by comparison with two years of Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) data.
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Biomass Burning in the Tropics: Impact on Atmospheric Chemistry and Biogeochemical Cycles

TL;DR: Widespread burning of biomass serves to clear land for shifting cultivation, to convert forests to agricultural and pastoral lands, and to remove dry vegetation in order to promote agricultural productivity and the growth of higher yield grasses, but it may also disturb biogeochemical cycles, especially that of nitrogen.
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