Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 50
4
Global Tropospheric
Chemistry- A Cad to Action
In the past 12 years, the National Research Council
has issued at least 10 reports concerned wholly or partly
with atmospheric chemistry. Most of these reports have
focused on identified atmospheric environmental prob-
lems and ways to alleviate damage to the environment.
For example, the issues arising from fossil fuel combus-
tion, stratospheric ozone perturbations due to super-
sonic aircraft, and man-made chlorofluorocarbons and
airborne particles and their effects have been studied
and exposed in these reports. A recent reports on acid
deposition in North America adds to this impressive
body of literature. The latter report was commissioned
and prepared in an attempt to discern, from available
information, scientific conclusions that could lead to for-
mulation of public policy.
By contrast and in response to the charge provided to
our panel (see Preface to this report), the present report
looks ahead to future research. We conclude that a global
study of tropospheric chemistry is needed to provide
answers to major questions about the chemistry of the
world's atmosphere and the effects of this chemistry on
'Acid Deposition: Atmospheric Processes in Eastern North Amer-
ica, A Review of Current Scientific Understanding, Committee on
Atmospheric Transport and Chemical Transformation in Acid Pre-
cipitation, National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., lg83, 375
PP
the physical state of the atmosphere. This conclusion
arose from an assessment of the current state of atmo-
spheric chemistry knowledge (see Part II of this report).
Further, we attempt to outline an overall scientific strat-
egy to allow the identified objectives to be attained eco-
nomically. Although the scientific strategy adopts the
intellectual framework of geochemical and biogeochem-
ical cycling of chemical elements, the proposed research
program has a strong heuristic character. In many re-
spects, the proposed research program is similar to pro-
grams envisioned earlier in National Aeronautics and
Space Administration reports and in less formal discus-
sions involving U.S. and European scientists and Na-
tional Science Foundation staff.
The focus on the global troposphere is required scien-
tifically. It does not preclude attention to existing ques-
tions of smaller-scale air pollution. Indeed, we believe
that the knowledge to be gained from the research we
propose will permit much sounder assessments of many
pollution issues and eventually more effective protection
and management of the world's natural resources.
The major observational elements of the proposed
Global Tropospheric Chemistry Program are outlined in
Figure 4.1. The four major field studies biological
sources, global distribution and long-range transport,
photochemical transformation, and conversion and re-
moval are illustrated along with their component ex-
periments. These field studies, combined with data on
50
OCR for page 51
A CALL TO ACTION
Biological Sources
of Atmospheric
U
Individual Biome
Experiments
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
7ZY
51
Global Distributions l
and Long-Range
Transpor1 Study
_
Distri buttons
Netwo rk
1 .
Long-Term
Trends
=
Photochemical
Transformation
Study
Theory
Validation
Experiments
Surface
So urce/ R eceptor
Network
~ Conversion and |
| Removal Study |
Concentration
Distri button
Experiment
.
1 __
Wet Removal I Dry Removal |
Experiment Program |
AL
GLOBAL TROPOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY SYSTEMS MODELS AND SUBMOC)ELS
FIGURE 4.1 Major observational elements in the proposed Global Tropospheric Chemistry Program.
the rates and mechanisms of atmospheric chemical reac-
tions determined in the laboratory, will provide data for
the development of Global Tropospheric Chemistry Systems
Models. These global TCSMs are necessary if we are to
obtain both a comprehensive understanding of global
tropospheric cycles and a predictive capability in the
future.
Because the proposed program is one of basic re-
search, the focus is on questions and concepts rather
than on a detailed plan of execution. Accordingly, a
detailed estimate of pro gram cost is not attempted. It is
clear, however, that incremental funding of several tens
of millions of dollars per year for a decade or more would
be required to support the proposed investigations. Fi-
nally, it should be emphasized that we have outlined
only the U. S. national component of a necessarily inter-
national research program for which there appears to
be significant and growing support.
OCR for page 52
Representative terms from entire chapter:
tropospheric chemistry
