Aug 12, 2010 10:27 GMT  ·  By
The concentration and global transport of carbon monoxide pollution from fires burning in Russia, Siberia and Canada is depicted in two new NASA animations
   The concentration and global transport of carbon monoxide pollution from fires burning in Russia, Siberia and Canada is depicted in two new NASA animations

Experts at NASA are using their assets in orbit to search for and analyze carbon monoxide gas concentrations around the world.

Their work was prompted by the fact that current wildfires, in the Russian Federation and elsewhere, are causing massive amounts of the stuff to be released in Earth's atmosphere.

Far from remaining contained in a single area, the dangerous smoke is lofted to moderate altitudes in the atmosphere, and are therefore spread all over the planet.

The effects of these fires now reach all around the globe, even if no clear signs – such as ash or flames – are visible halfway around the world from their location.

At this point, the largest wildfires affect western and central Russia, eastern Siberia and western Canada, experts at the American space agency say.

In addition to being dangerous by itself, carbon monoxide (CO) is also one of the main ingredients for the creation of ground-level ozone – a chemical that causes numerous respiratory problems.

According to the latest readings captured by NASA satellites, the largest CO concentrations are now caught in the lower bounds of the mid-latitude jet streams, which are now carrying them around the globe.

Experts at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), in Pasadena, California, announce that they've used the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA Aqua satellites to create animations of Earth's atmosphere.

The data sets cover three days, and were pieced together with the “Eyes on the Earth 3-D” feature on NASA's global climate change website.

Experts produce two short movies, both of which depict what went on in the Earth's atmosphere over the past three days.

The AIRS is a facility instrument whose goal is to support climate research and improve weather forecasting, by using cutting-edge infrared technology to create 3D maps of air and surface temperature, water vapor, and cloud properties.

Also aboard the Aqua satellite are the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU-A), the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES), and the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-EOS (AMSR-E).

AIRS is managed by a team of scientists at the JPL, under a contract with NASA. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), also in Pasadena.

The animations can be viewed here.

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