Problems of space ecology and the monitoring of aerosols

This paper analyzes the main problems of monitoring the atmospheric aerosol . Data on the effect of the atmospheric aerosol on the change of the earth' s climate are generalized. Although the scattering aerosol mainly produces cooling, the effect of the aerosol in changing the climate is significantly more complex, since it still absorbs short-wavelength and long-wavelength radiation and participates in the phase transitions of water in the atmosph ere and in various heterogeneous reactions. In particular, contamination of space with an accumulation of dust can cause irreversible changes of the r adiation regime of the earth as a planet. (C) 2001 The Optical Society of A merica.