Dust: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 13:49, 27 March 2024

dust

A general term used to describe dry solid particles suspended in the atmosphere that can range in size from submicron to several tens of microns. Dust can originate from a variety of sources: for example, soil, salt spray, smoke from forest fires and industrial sources, volcanic eruptions, extraterrestrial sources (i.e., meteor dust), and organic materials, such as bacteria, plant pollen, animal hairs, and human skin cells. It was once thought that dust particles were a main source of condensation nuclei; this is no longer regarded as probable, as most dusts are not sufficiently hygroscopic. Dust particles may travel thousands of kilometers and have severe global public health impacts, including bronchitis, asthma, lung cancer, and circulatory mortality.
Compare smoke, haze;
see duststorm, dust devil.

Term edited 14 October 2016.

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 == dust ==
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-<div class="definition"><div class="short_definition">Solid materials suspended in the [[atmosphere]] in the form of small irregular [[particles]], many  of which are microscopic in size.</div><br/> <div class="paragraph">It imparts a tannish or grayish hue to distant objects. The sun's disk is pale or colorless or has  a yellowish tinge at all periods of the day. Dust cannot be a stable component of the atmosphere  because it must eventually fall back to the earth's surface when winds and [[turbulence]] become too  weak to bear it aloft. Dust is due to many natural and artificial sources, for example, volcanic  eruptions, salt spray from the seas, blowing solid particles, plant pollen, bacteria, and [[smoke]] and  ashes from forest fires and industrial combustion processes. It was once thought that dust particles  were a main source of [[condensation nucleus|condensation nuclei]]; this is no longer regarded as probable as most dusts  are not sufficiently [[hygroscopic]]. <br/>''Compare'' [[smoke]], [[haze]]; <br/>''see'' [[duststorm]], [[dust  devil|dust devil]].</div><br/> </div>
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+A general term used to describe dry solid [[particles]] suspended in the [[atmosphere]] that can range in size from submicron to several tens of microns. Dust can originate from a variety of sources: for example, soil, salt spray, [[smoke]] from forest fires and industrial sources, volcanic eruptions, extraterrestrial sources (i.e., meteor dust), and organic materials, such as bacteria, plant pollen, animal hairs, and human skin cells. It was once thought that dust particles were a main source of [[condensation nucleus|condensation nuclei]]; this is no longer regarded as probable, as most dusts are not sufficiently [[hygroscopic]]. Dust particles may travel thousands of kilometers and have severe global public health impacts, including bronchitis, asthma, lung cancer, and circulatory mortality.<br/>''Compare'' [[smoke]], [[haze]]; <br/>''see'' [[duststorm]], [[dust  devil|dust devil]].
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+<p>''Term edited 14 October 2016.''</p>