NASA planes to participate in Amazon global warming

Copyright 1999 Agence France Presse January 9, 1999

NASA planes were to arrive in Brazil this weekend to take part in a project to study the biosphere over the Amazon, US officials said.

The aircraft were to take part in a six-year study examining the relationship between the vegetation and the atmosphere and what impact the forest has on global warming.

Scientists also were to collect information using satellites and 15 towers equipped with sensors as part of the 100-million-dollar project.

At one point the Amazon was considered as one of the planet's "lungs" because of the quantity of carbon dioxide absorbed by its plants during photosynthesis.

But now there are indications that if more carbon dioxide is produced than the forest can absorb, a reverse procedure occurs in plants called "the hothouse effect" that prevents the planet from cooling down.

Some environmentalists even argue that the jungle may be the source of carbon dioxide when the El Nino weather system is active because the lack of humidity prevents plants photosynthesizing.

Brazilian environmentalists disagree and hope that this research project will clarify the issue, in addition to improving understanding of the jungle.

The project will use ER-2 planes, similar to the US spy U-2 planes, which fly at a level of 17 kilometers (10 miles) of altitude.

Brazil, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United States are sponsoring the research.

Comments on this posting?
Click here to post a public comment on the Trash Talk Bulletin Board.
Click here to send a private comment to the Junkman.

---

Material presented on this home page constitutes opinion of Steven J. Milloy.

Copyright © 1998 Steven J. Milloy. All rights reserved on original material. Material copyrighted by others is used either with permission or under a claim of "fair use." Site developed and hosted by WestLake Solutions, Inc.