Plants can moderate climate warming, new research shows. As temperatures warm, plants release gases that help form clouds and cool the atmosphere, according to research from IIASA and the University of Helsinki. The new study, published in Nature Geoscience, identified a negative feedback loop in which higher temperatures lead to an increase in concentrations of natural aerosols that have a cooling effect on the atmosphere. "Plants, by reacting to changes in temperature, also moderate these changes," says IIASA and University of Helsinki researcher Pauli Paasonen, who led the study. Scientists had known that some aerosols -- particles that float in the atmosphere -- cool the climate as they reflect sunlight and form cloud droplets, which reflect sunlight efficiently.
Aerosol particles come from many sources, including human emissions. But the effect of so-called biogenic aerosol -- particulate matter that originates from plants -- had been less well understood. Motion on 'Greeks only' armed forces to be voted on next week. AIDSfreeAFRICA. Home. Random, Interesting, Amazing Facts - Fun Quizzes and Trivia. The Guardian on Facebook.