The results of a new study by U.S. and Chinese scientists suggest that soot plays
a bigger role in regional climate changes than scientists had previously realized. People in developing countries often produce the microscopic carbon particles by inefficiently burning diesel fuel, coal, and plant matter.
The study suggests that increases in atmospheric soot during the past few decades have contributed to severe rains in southern China and droughts and dust storms in the northern region (SN: 10/6/01, p. 218: Ill Winds).