Royal Belgian Institute for Space AeronomyPhysics and chemistry of the atmosphere of the Earth and other planets, and of outer space.
Air quality
The number of molecules of gases that you will find in one cubic meter decreases as you go up from the surface to 100 km altitude.
1992 mission with experiments for understanding the interaction between the sun and the Earth's atmosphere. Belgian astronaut Dirk Frimout flew along.
Short-lived gases are mainly relevant to air quality and the longer-lived gases more to climate, but there is a very strong link between the two phenomena.
Nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere has both natural and anthropogenic sources, with humans causing the vast majority.
Air quality is the composition of the atmosphere in our immediate environment and climate is the average "weather" over a long term period.
The substances that determine the composition of the atmosphere in our immediate vicinity and/or the average "weather" over a long-term period occupy only 1% of the volume of the atmosphere.
For most measurements of atmospheric ingredients, the same technique is used: the DOAS method.
Which phenomenon causes the sky on our planet to turn blue? And why at sunset red or orange?
The troposphere region contains the air we breathe and is like the stage for meteorology and climate.
Ozone in the stratosphere absorbs dangerous UV radiation to protect us, while ozone in the troposphere is poisonous substance.
From ground to space each layer is characterized by specific temperatures: troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere and exosphere
A multidisciplinary science based on observations of the atmospherical environment (terrestrial and extraterrestrial).
Large cities, as well as the main industrial regions stand out as severely polluted and are consequently clearly identifiable on air pollution maps.
Sulphur dioxide is produced by volcanic eruptions or biomass burning and enters the atmosphere where it can lead to acid rain.
Elevated ozone levels can be harmful for health and vegetation. Tropospheric ozone is not directly emitted, but produced by chemical reactions.
Human activities like energy use and agriculture are responsible for the emissions of various chemical compounds in the atmosphere, causing a spectacular increase of tropospheric gaseous pollutants.
Next to water vapour and CO2, what other gases are to be found in Earth's troposphere?
The ash and the gas sulphur dioxide (SO2) emitted by volcanic eruptions are a major hazard to aircraft.