Atmospheric transport and transformation

Abstract

The meteorological factors determining the dispersion and deposition of pollutants are described. The results and limitations of attempts to model the deposition of anthropogenic sulphur over western Europe are given and compared with the measured deposition fields. The difficulty of monitoring the deposition on this scale is also emphasized as is the episodic nature of much of the deposition. Finally the atmospheric chemistry involved in the oxidation of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide is described and evidence presented to illustrate the complexity of the factors determining the acidity of rain.