Study Fingers Soot as a Major Player in Global Warming

Climate-change authorities long ago tagged carbon dioxide public enemy number one. Now, there may be a new number two: tiny particles of black carbon, or soot. According to a new analysis reported online this week in Nature Geoscience, climate scientists are concluding that reports such as last November's assessment by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) may seriously underestimate black carbon's role in global warming. The good news is that—unlike reductions in greenhouse gas emissions—reducing the release of large amounts of black carbon worldwide would have immediate effects.