ABSTRACT2-]) ratio value, which increased from north to south along the aircraft flight track, indicated oxidation of SO 2 to form sulfuric acid during transport. In addition, pronounced chlorine loss suggested that substantial production of acidic substances occurred in the air mass as it moved away from China. The negative correlation between the Cl -/Na + ratio and the nss-sulfate concentration suggested that the reaction of sulfuric acid with sea salt was the main cause of the strong chlorine loss. On 28 March a very clear layered structure of the air mass was observed that could be clearly explained by the CFORS computer simulation model. Therefore, here the observation results obtained on 28 March 2008 are reported.
Airborne bacteria are dispersed along with Asian dust and have various influences on atmospheric characteristics, downwind ecosystems, and public health. In this study, aircraft observations were conducted during Asian dust passage and non-dust conditions over the East China Sea in December 2010, and the composition of culturable bacteria within the dust was investigated using culture-based gene analysis. The 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed that the 34 cultured strains isolated from the transported dust could be grouped into Bacillales and Actinomycetales. Highly tolerant endospore-forming bacteria (25 isolates) were predominant in the composition. On the other hand, all non-endospore-forming bacteria (9 isolates) were gram-positive bacteria with high guanine and cytosine contents, which have substantial ultraviolet (UV) resistance. Thus, the isolated culturable bacteria were strains having some tolerance for exposure to UV radiation. Although the atmosphere is an extreme environment for bacterial survival, Asian dust can facilitate atmospheric dispersion of culturable bacteria that are resistant to the harsh ambient air environment.
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