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Atmospheric chemistry

Iodine's air of importance

Nature volume 417, pages 597–598 (2002)Cite this article

Iodine-containing emissions from marine algae can be converted by sunlight into aerosol particles. If this phenomenon occurs on a large scale, it could have significant effects on climate.

The discovery of a previously unrecognized source of aerosol particles is big news to atmospheric scientists. Just such a source is described by O'Dowd et al. on page 632 of this issue1. Building on earlier work, they have unravelled a photochemical phenomenon that occurs in sea air and produces aerosol particles composed largely of iodine oxides. The precursor molecules are organic iodide vapours emitted by marine algae.

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Figure 1: Aerosols — the big picture.

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  1. Aerodyne Research, Inc., 45 Manning Road, Billerica, 01821-3976, Massachusetts, USA

    Charles E. Kolb

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  1. Charles E. Kolb
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Correspondence to Charles E. Kolb.

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Kolb, C. Iodine's air of importance. Nature 417, 597–598 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/417597a

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