Anthropogenic aerosols mask increases in US rainfall by greenhouse gases.

ABSTRACT: A comprehensive understanding of human-induced changes to rainfall is essential for water resource management and infrastructure design. However, at regional scales, existing detection and attribution studies are rarely able to conclusively identify human influence on precipitation. Here we show that anthropogenic aerosol and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are the primary drivers of precipitation change over the United States. GHG emissions increase mean and extreme precipitation from rain gauge measurements across all seasons, while the decadal-scale effect of global aerosol emissions decreases precipitation. Local aerosol emissions further offset GHG increases in the winter and spring but enhance rainfall during the summer and fall. Our results show that the conflicting literature on his

SUBMITTER: Risser MD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10884021 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature