Brown Layer Over the Pacific Ocean

Orange County Coast is one of the best places to visit on a normal day. Today however the ocean looked depressed. What normally would be a blue ocean meeting up with the blue sky and fluffy white clouds turned out to be a view you would find looking over a sewage yard. Across the ocean you can see a light layer of marine lying still above the water. The clouds are packing in for an expected storm. In between what should be a gorgeous view loiters a thick layer of brown clouds. A brown haze has taken over the middle section of the sky as far south to as far north you can see while standing along the coast. It extends over Catalina Island and way up to Long beach where the layer appears to be even thicker. So what is causing this Tourist town FUNK?

Brown clouds over the Ocean are actually nothing new. To Orange County, yes we are spoiled and not used to seeing such disgusting sites but the fact is these brown clouds have been forming all over the place thanks to air pollution. They actually have a name of their own. These type of brown clouds are known at ABC's. Atmospheric Brown Clouds. They are formed by a mixture of Air Pollution, biomass. Everything we burn from our fireplaces to our industry smokestacks, cigarettes and bbq's. Everything we burn that is turning into clouds and ash are absorbed into our air (dis-quality) sytem. What makes it so visible is the attachment it makes to the natural aerosols we find in a coastal environment. Sand and salt are natural contributors to this phenomenon. Mix this with the Edison power plant you see along PCH and all the oil rigs out in the ocean and you have the man made aerosols/ie:sulfuric ash mixing with the natural ones. Together they stick and form what is called Atmospheric Brown Clouds, ABC's.

Scientists do have concern for people who are exposed to breathing this type of air. This type of air can be worse than first and second hand smoke. The reason for this is you can quit smoking but living in this type of air there is no escape. Fortunately we are not cursed with this view very often. It can loiter for sometimes weeks at a time. Asia/Indian Ocean have experienced this before. Breathing it is not considered healthy as it has a hard time breaking down. Think Aerosols as a female I automatically think hairspray, sticky, condensed air. The same can be compared to these brown clouds.