Key Points
Clouds form when water vaporan invisible gas in the atmospheresticks to tiny floating particles, such as dust, and turns into liquid water droplets or ice crystals..
In a newly published study, we show that microplastic particles can have the same effects, producing ice crystals at temperatures 5 to 10 degrees Celsius (9 to 18 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than droplets without microplastics...
In clouds in the mid- to upper atmosphere where temperatures are between 32 and 36 degrees Fahrenheit (0 to 38 degrees Celsius), ice crystals normally form around mineral dust particles from dry soils or biological particles, such as pollen or bacteria...
If microplastics increase the presence of ice particles in clouds compared with liquid water droplets, this shifting ratio could change clouds effect on Earths energy balance...
We also need to understand the concentration of microplastics compared with other particles that could nucleate ice, such as mineral dust and biological particles, to see whether microplastics are present at comparable levels..
