Apart from the major gases that make up the atmosphere, there are several smaller components but nonetheless important.
Water vapor is the source of clouds and, like carbon dioxide, can absorb some of earth's heat.
Aerosols are tiny solid and liquid particles that can be anything from smoke, soot, ash, pollen and dust. They are responsible for the red and orange colors at sunrise and sunset. They are heavy enough that they do not stay suspended in the atmosphere for a long time.
Ozone is composed of three oxygen molecules. It absorbs harmful UV light and and radiation. It was discovered by Martinus van Marum and was named after ozein, the Greek word for "to smell". It was thus named for its pungent smell after van Marum recognized the smell as the same that occurs after lightning strikes. Even though ozone protects us from harmful light and radiation, when it is produced at the ground level, it becomes harmful to human health. For this reason, ozone has been labeled a pollutant.
Water vapor is the source of clouds and, like carbon dioxide, can absorb some of earth's heat.
Aerosols are tiny solid and liquid particles that can be anything from smoke, soot, ash, pollen and dust. They are responsible for the red and orange colors at sunrise and sunset. They are heavy enough that they do not stay suspended in the atmosphere for a long time.
Ozone is composed of three oxygen molecules. It absorbs harmful UV light and and radiation. It was discovered by Martinus van Marum and was named after ozein, the Greek word for "to smell". It was thus named for its pungent smell after van Marum recognized the smell as the same that occurs after lightning strikes. Even though ozone protects us from harmful light and radiation, when it is produced at the ground level, it becomes harmful to human health. For this reason, ozone has been labeled a pollutant.