Dim Harvest: Asian air pollution has limited rice yields

Thick clouds of air pollution over southern Asia and increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere worldwide have restricted rice harvests in India for the past 2 decades, a new analysis suggests.

Aerosols, such as volcanic ash and industrial soot, typically cool Earth’s surface by reflecting some solar radiation back into space. This phenomenon somewhat counteracts the planet-warming effect of increased concentrations of gases such as carbon dioxide, says V.