Intake for great particle pump at Pic du Midi Observatory (French Pyrenees). Credit: Jeroen Sonke
Previously found in rivers, oceans, and snow, microplastic has actually now been discovered in the high-altitude air surrounding the Pic du Midi (2,877 m)– by a global research study group consisting of researchers from the CNRS, Universit é Grenoble Alpes, and the University of Strathclyde (Scotland).
After evaluating the structure of 10,000 m 3 of air recorded weekly by a pump set up at the Pic du Midi Observatory, the scientists report a microplastic concentration of roughly one particle per 4 m 3 This plastic (e.g., polystyrene or polyethylene polymers) comes primarily from product packaging.
Intake for great particle pump at Pic du MidiObservatory Credit: Jeroen Sonke
While presenting no direct hazard, its existence far from sources of contamination is nevertheless unexpected. Mathematical designs of air mass trajectories utilized by the researchers suggest that the particles came from Africa, North America, or the Atlantic Ocean, which suggests global climatic transportation of microplastic.
The group’s findings, released in Nature Communications on December 21, 2021, explain a brand-new phase in the microplastic life process and use a description for their existence at the poles, on Mount Everest, or in other remote areas of our world.
Reference: “Evidence of free tropospheric and long-range transport of microplastic at Pic du Midi Observatory” by S. Allen, D. Allen, F. Baladima, V. R. Phoenix, J. L. Thomas, G. Le Roux and J. E. Sonke, 21 December 2021, Nature Communications
DOI: 10.1038/ s41467-021-27454 -7
