Scientists will chase thunderstorms this spring and summer in three states, in part to look at the role the storms play in pulling pollution from the surface up into the stratosphere.
The $10 million field study, known as the "Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry" (DC3) project, started May 15.
Through the end of June, more than 100 scientists from about 30 universities and governmental organizations are studying thunderstorms in the diverse weather environments of Oklahoma, Colorado and Alabama.
Thunderstorms act like elevators, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In what are called "updrafts," the storms suck up air and pollution (both man-made and natural) from near Earth's surface and transport it for many miles into the upper atmosphere.
The scientists will study changes in the chemistry of the air — and the pollution — that goes into and comes out of thunderstorms, using both airplanes and ground-based equipment, according to scientist Don MacGorman of NOAA's National Severe Storms Laboratory.
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