Construction has begun on a giant
observation tower in the heart of the Amazon basin to monitor climate
change.
14 September 2014
The Amazon Tall Tower Observatory is
expected to rise 325m from the ground.
Its instruments will gather data on
greenhouse gases, aerosol particles and the weather in one of the
largest continuous rain forests on the planet.
Brazilian and German scientists hope to
use the data to better understand sources of greenhouse gases and
answer questions on climate change.
The tower is being constructed out of
steel that was brought thousands of kilometres from the south of
Brazil to the site, about 160km (100 miles) from the Amazonian city
of Manaus.
Because of its height, the tower will
make it possible to investigate the alteration and movement of air
masses through the forest over a distance of several hundred
kilometres.
"The measurement point is widely
without direct human influence, and therefore ideal to investigate
the meaning of the forest region for the chemistry and physics of the
atmosphere," said Jurgen Kesselmeier, the project coordinator
for the German side, quoted on the Max Planck Institute for
Chemistry in Mainz website.
The Amazon jungle is one of the world's
most sensitive ecosystems, with a powerful influence on the intake
and release of carbon into the atmosphere.
"The tower will help us answer
innumerable questions related to global climate change," said
Paulo Artaxo, from the University of Sao Paulo and project
coordinator for the Brazilians.
The tower will be integrated into an
existing structure of smaller measuring towers in the region.
When finished, it will complement a
similar observatory built in 2006 that already stands in Central
Siberia.
(source: BBC)
