Atmospheric Chemistry

Abstract

The field of atmospheric chemistry is very broad, both in the problems addressed and in the approaches taken. Thus, it includes laboratory and theoretical studies, field measurements, and modeling, and addresses chemistry from the lower to the upper atmosphere, in remote and polluted regions, from marine to continental areas, and both outdoors and indoors. Given this complexity, it is impossible to capture all aspects with the limited number of articles that can be included in a special feature. Thus, what follows should be taken as illustrative rather than inclusive. The genesis of the field of atmospheric chemistry lies in air pollution in the troposphere (lower atmosphere), for which there is documentation at least as long ago as the 13th century. Dramatic incidents of excess deaths such as in the Meuse Valley, Belgium, in 1930 (1), and in London, England, in 1952 (2) brought public and scientific attention to “smog” (smog = smoke + fog) and, in particular, to the problem of sulfur dioxide and sulfate particles it forms in air, as well as to direct emissions of particles from combustion sources. Around 1950, what initially appeared to be a different kind of smog, now known as photochemical air pollution, was recognized in the Los Angeles area. The seminal work of Haagen-Smit demonstrated that the necessary ingredients (primary pollutants) were volatile organic compounds (VOC), oxides of nitrogen (NOx = NO + NO2), and sunlight. The wavelengths available to drive photochemistry at the earth's surface are restricted to … 1E-mail: bjfinlay{at}uci.edu.