• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Monday, September 22, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Chemistry

Air pollution speeds snowmelt

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
June 27, 2023
in Chemistry
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
Changes in Himalayan positive radiative forcing
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

Diminished anthropogenic pollutant emissions during 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns reduced snowmelt in the Himalayas, according to a study. Liqiang Zhang and colleagues used multiple satellite data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), as well as a coupled atmosphere-chemistry-snow model (GEOS-Chem-SNICAR) to explore how the sudden, dramatic reduction in particulate pollution in the region affected snow and ice melt. Snow and ice on the Tibetan plateau act as a water source for over 20% of the global population. However, ice and snow in the Himalayas have been melting at an accelerating rate in recent decades. While much of this melting is attributable to climate change, air pollution also plays a role, because dark particles of dust and soot that fall on frozen surfaces absorb solar energy and melt the nearby snow and ice. The COVID-19 pandemic created a natural experiment because the Indian national lockdown from 25 March 2020 to 31 May 2020 reduced economic and transportation activities. The authors estimate that the reduced anthropogenic pollutant emissions during the Indian lockdown was responsible for 71.6% of the reduction in radiative forcing on snow in April 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. This reduction in radiative forcing may have prevented 27 Mt in ice and snow melt. The results emphasize the power of reducing anthropogenic pollutant emissions when combating snow and ice melt, according to the authors.

Changes in Himalayan positive radiative forcing

Credit: Hou et al

Diminished anthropogenic pollutant emissions during 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns reduced snowmelt in the Himalayas, according to a study. Liqiang Zhang and colleagues used multiple satellite data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), as well as a coupled atmosphere-chemistry-snow model (GEOS-Chem-SNICAR) to explore how the sudden, dramatic reduction in particulate pollution in the region affected snow and ice melt. Snow and ice on the Tibetan plateau act as a water source for over 20% of the global population. However, ice and snow in the Himalayas have been melting at an accelerating rate in recent decades. While much of this melting is attributable to climate change, air pollution also plays a role, because dark particles of dust and soot that fall on frozen surfaces absorb solar energy and melt the nearby snow and ice. The COVID-19 pandemic created a natural experiment because the Indian national lockdown from 25 March 2020 to 31 May 2020 reduced economic and transportation activities. The authors estimate that the reduced anthropogenic pollutant emissions during the Indian lockdown was responsible for 71.6% of the reduction in radiative forcing on snow in April 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. This reduction in radiative forcing may have prevented 27 Mt in ice and snow melt. The results emphasize the power of reducing anthropogenic pollutant emissions when combating snow and ice melt, according to the authors.



Journal

PNAS Nexus

DOI

10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad172

Article Title

The COVID-19 lockdown: A unique perspective into heterogeneous impacts of transboundary pollution on snow and ice darkening across the Himalayas

Article Publication Date

27-Jun-2023

Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

New Study Warns Seasonal Freeze–Thaw Cycles Could Cause “Green” Biochar to Release Toxic Metals

New Study Warns Seasonal Freeze–Thaw Cycles Could Cause “Green” Biochar to Release Toxic Metals

September 20, 2025
blank

Gravitino Emerges as a Promising New Candidate for Dark Matter

September 19, 2025

Advancing Quantum Chemistry: Enhancing Accuracy in Key Simulation Methods

September 19, 2025

Neutrino Mixing in Colliding Neutron Stars Alters Merger Dynamics

September 19, 2025

POPULAR NEWS

  • blank

    Breakthrough in Computer Hardware Advances Solves Complex Optimization Challenges

    156 shares
    Share 62 Tweet 39
  • Physicists Develop Visible Time Crystal for the First Time

    68 shares
    Share 27 Tweet 17
  • Tailored Gene-Editing Technology Emerges as a Promising Treatment for Fatal Pediatric Diseases

    49 shares
    Share 20 Tweet 12
  • Scientists Achieve Ambient-Temperature Light-Induced Heterolytic Hydrogen Dissociation

    48 shares
    Share 19 Tweet 12

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Enhanced Copper Detection with Iron Oxide-Graphite Sensors

Micro-LEDs Drive Transparent, Free-Form, Near-Eye Displays

Key Drivers of Corporate Governance in Burundi’s Cooperatives

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.