Chemistry of volcanic fallout reveals secrets of past eruptions
(NC&T/UCI) In the January 5 issue of the journal Science, the
researchers from the University of California, San Diego, the
National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the
University of Grenoble in France report that the chemical
fingerprint of fallout from past eruptions reveals how high the
volcanic material reached, and what chemical reactions occurred
while it was in the atmosphere. The work is particularly
relevant because the effect of atmospheric particles, or
aerosols, is a large uncertainty in models of climate, according
to Mark Thiemens, Dean of UCSD's Division of Physical Sciences
and professor of chemistry and biochemistry. "In predictions
about global warming, the greatest amount of error is associated
with atmospheric aerosols," explained Thiemens, in whose
laboratory the method, which is based on the measurement of
isotopes—or forms of sulfur—was developed. "Now for the first
time, we can account for all of the chemistry in