What is acid rain?
Here's what causes acid rain and how it effects our planet and our bodies. Causes of acid rain
Rotting vegetation and erupting volcanoes release some chemicals that can cause acid rain, but most acid rain is a product of human activities. The biggest sources are coal-burning power plants, factories, and automobiles.
But nitrogen oxides contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone, a major pollutant that can be harmful to people. Both gases cause environmental and health concerns because they can spread easily via air pollution and acid rain.
Acid rain has many ecological effects, especially on lakes, streams, wetlands, and other aquatic environments. Acid rain makes such waters more acidic, which results in more aluminum absorption from soil, which is carried into lakes and streams. That combination makes surface waters toxic to aquatic animals.
(Water pollution is a rising global crisis. Here's what you need to know.)
Some species can tolerate acidic waters better than others. However, in an interconnected ecosystem, what affects some species eventually affects many more throughout the food chain, including non-aquatic species such as birds.
Acid rain and fog also damage forests, especially those at higher elevations. The dry deposition of acid robs the soil of essential nutrients such as calcium and cause aluminum to be released in the soil, which makes it hard for trees to take up water. Acids also harm tree leaves and needles.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
National Geographic
a day ago
- National Geographic
What is acid rain?
Acid rain is any form of precipitation that contains high levels of nitric and sulfuric acids. First coined by Scottish chemist Robert Angus Smith in 1852, acid rain can also occur in the form of snow, fog, and tiny bits of dry material that settle to Earth. Normal rain is slightly acidic, with a pH of 5.6, while acid rain generally has a pH between 4.2 and 4.4. Here's what causes acid rain and how it effects our planet and our bodies. Causes of acid rain Rotting vegetation and erupting volcanoes release some chemicals that can cause acid rain, but most acid rain is a product of human activities. The biggest sources are coal-burning power plants, factories, and automobiles. But nitrogen oxides contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone, a major pollutant that can be harmful to people. Both gases cause environmental and health concerns because they can spread easily via air pollution and acid rain. Acid rain has many ecological effects, especially on lakes, streams, wetlands, and other aquatic environments. Acid rain makes such waters more acidic, which results in more aluminum absorption from soil, which is carried into lakes and streams. That combination makes surface waters toxic to aquatic animals. (Water pollution is a rising global crisis. Here's what you need to know.) Some species can tolerate acidic waters better than others. However, in an interconnected ecosystem, what affects some species eventually affects many more throughout the food chain, including non-aquatic species such as birds. Acid rain and fog also damage forests, especially those at higher elevations. The dry deposition of acid robs the soil of essential nutrients such as calcium and cause aluminum to be released in the soil, which makes it hard for trees to take up water. Acids also harm tree leaves and needles.
Time Magazine
a day ago
- Time Magazine
Rebecca Young: TIME's Girls of the Year List
In the middle of winter, temperatures in the Scottish city of Glasgow can drop as low as 17 degrees Fahrenheit. For anybody unfortunate enough to be sleeping on the streets, those conditions could quickly become deadly. That fact was on Rebecca Young's mind when the schoolgirl, then 11 years old, was asked during a club at school to come up with an idea focused on helping people. Young's design—a solar-powered backpack with an electric blanket inside—ended up winning an engineering award in a U.K.-wide competition with 70,000 entrants. It wasn't just an idea: Young researched different types of solar panels, wiring, and batteries, and drew up a detailed blueprint. The engineering firm Thales, which sponsored the competition, subsequently manufactured 30 of the blankets which were distributed to a homeless shelter in Glasgow earlier this year, Young says. There are plans to make 120 more. 'I'm very proud,' says her mother Louise. The homelessness problem won't be solved with blankets alone, but for 12-year-old Young, the experience was a first taste of how engineering in practice. 'It helped me see a different aspect of engineering, and how it could actually help people,' she says. 'That definitely helped inspire me.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Glasgow pupil, 12, who invented solar-powered backpack for the homeless makes Time magazine's Girls of the Year list
A Glasgow pupil who designed a solar-powered backpack with an electric blanket inside to help homeless people has been named on Time magazine's first ever Girls of the Year list. Rebecca Young was just 11 when she came up with the idea after becoming concerned about people sleeping on the streets during a freezing Scottish winter. Now 12, she has been named alongside nine other girls from around the world all recognised as being young leaders inspiring communities, as part of a list aimed at celebrating and empowering girls. The Kelvinside Academy pupil said it was "cool and very unexpected", adding: "I'm honoured by the fact they wanted to include me on their Girls of the Year list and hope other kids see it and decide to do their part in helping people." Rebecca, who won a UK engineering award earlier this year for her design, has already seen 30 of the blankets being manufactured and distributed to a homeless shelter in , with plans to make more. The youngster and eight of the other girls are featured as part of a limited-edition animated Time cover - reimagined as Lego minifigures, with each character aimed at capturing the spirit of their achievements. A-level results day live: The collaboration followed a recent study by the Lego group of more than 32,000 parents and children across 21 countries which found 70% of young women struggle to see themselves as someone who is good at building things. It also found that children were twice as likely to credit major inventions to men - with most believing that wifi (69%) and the Moon landing software (68%) were invented by men, despite being pioneered by women. Time chief executive Jessica Sibley said the list features girls aged between 12 and 17 who are "shaping their communities with courage and purpose". Julia Goldin, Lego group chief product and marketing officer, said: "When girls don't see it, they don't believe it - the world risks missing out on the next big breakthrough. There's no stopping what girls can build. "Together with Time we hope these stories will inspire a future generation of unstoppable female builders to dream big and continue making their mark on the world."
