Acidity in Precipitation and Solar North-South Asymmetry
We are motivated by both the accumulating evidence for the connection of solar variability to the chemistry of nitrogen oxide in the atmosphere and recent finding that the Galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) influx is associated with the solar northsouth asymmetry. We have analyzed the measured pH in precip...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
The Korean Space Science Society
2014-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://ocean.kisti.re.kr/downfile/volume/kosss/OJOOBS/2014/v31n4/OJOOBS_2014_v31n4_325.pdf |
| Summary: | We are motivated by both the accumulating evidence for the connection of solar variability to the chemistry of nitrogen
oxide in the atmosphere and recent finding that the Galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) influx is associated with the solar northsouth
asymmetry. We have analyzed the measured pH in precipitation over the 109 stations distributed in the United States.
We have found that data of pH in precipitation as a whole appear to be marginally anti-correlated with the solar asymmetry.
That is, rain seems to become less acidic when the southern hemisphere of the Sun is more active. The acidity of rain is
also found to be correlated with the atmospheric temperature, while not to be correlated with solar activity itself. We have
carried on the analysis with two subsamples in which stations located in the east and in the west. We find that the pH data
derived from the eastern stations which are possibly polluted by sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides are not correlated with
the solar asymmetry, but with the temperature. On the contrary, the pH data obtained from the western stations are found
to be marginally anti-correlated with the solar asymmetry. In addition, the pH data obtained from the western stations are
found to be correlated with the solar UV radiation. We conclude by briefly pointing out that a role of the solar asymmetry
in the process of acidification of rain is to be further examined particularly when the level of pollution by sulfur oxides and
nitrogen oxides is low. |
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| ISSN: | 2093-5587 2093-1409 |