Cleaner Air Is Making The Earth Hotter — Study - CleanTechnica

A recent study highlights an unintended consequence of efforts to improve air quality: reducing sulfur dioxide emissions, particularly in East Asia, has contributed to an acceleration in global warming. Since 2010, China’s aggressive air pollution policies have cut sulfur dioxide emissions by about 75 percent, significantly lowering aerosol pollution. While this has clear health benefits, sulfur aerosols previously masked some of the warming caused by greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. The study found that these aerosol reductions have contributed approximately 0.05°C per decade to global temperature increases, explaining much of the recent spike in warming, even after accounting for natural climate variability. The research, based on simulations from eight major climate models through the Regional Aerosol Model Intercomparison Project (RAMIP), underscores the complex relationship between air pollution and climate change. Aerosols such as sulfur dioxide have short atmospheric lifetimes, so their removal leads to a temporary boost in warming until long-term greenhouse gas-driven trends dominate. The findings emphasize the necessity of simultaneous efforts to reduce both