Editing Aerobiology (section)

== Overview ==

The first mention of "aerobiology" was made by Fred Campbell Meier in the 1930s.<ref name=":0" /> The particles, which can be described as [[Aeroplankton]], generally range in size from nanometers to micrometers which makes them challenging to detect.<ref name=":4">{{cite journal |last1=Hofmann |first1=Frieder |last2=Otto |first2=Mathias |last3=Wosniok |first3=Werner |title=Maize pollen deposition in relation to distance from the nearest pollen source under common cultivation - results of 10 years of monitoring (2001 to 2010) |journal=Environmental Sciences Europe |date=December 2014 |volume=26 |issue=1 |doi=10.1186/s12302-014-0024-3 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

[[Aerosolization]] is the process of a small and light particles becoming suspended in moving air. Now [[bioaerosol]]s, these pollen and fungal spores can be transported across an ocean, or even travel around the globe.<ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last1=Malard |first1=Lucie A. |last2=Avila-Jimenez |first2=Maria-Luisa |last3=Schmale |first3=Julia |last4=Cuthbertson |first4=Lewis |last5=Cockerton |first5=Luke |last6=Pearce |first6=David A. |title=Aerobiology over the Southern Ocean – Implications for bacterial colonization of Antarctica |journal=Environment International |date=November 2022 |volume=169 |pages=107492 |doi=10.1016/j.envint.2022.107492 |pmid=36174481 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2022EnInt.16907492M }}</ref> Due to the high quantities of microbes and the ease of dispersion, [[Martinus Beijerinck]] once said "Everything is everywhere, the environment selects".<ref name=":3">{{cite journal |last1=Kellogg |first1=Christina A. |last2=Griffin |first2=Dale W. |title=Aerobiology and the global transport of desert dust |journal=Trends in Ecology & Evolution |date=November 2006 |volume=21 |issue=11 |pages=638–644 |doi=10.1016/j.tree.2006.07.004 |pmid=16843565 |bibcode=2006TEcoE..21..638K }}</ref> This means that aeroplankton are everywhere and have been everywhere, and it solely depends on environmental factors to determine which remain. Aeroplankton are found in significant quantities even in the [[Atmospheric boundary layer|Atmospheric boundary layer (ABL)]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Archer |first1=Stephen D.J. |last2=Lee |first2=Kevin C. |last3=Caruso |first3=Tancredi |last4=Alcami |first4=Antonio |last5=Araya |first5=Jonathan G. |last6=Cary |first6=S. Craig |last7=Cowan |first7=Don A. |last8=Etchebehere |first8=Claudia |last9=Gantsetseg |first9=Batdelger |last10=Gomez-Silva |first10=Benito |last11=Hartery |first11=Sean |last12=Hogg |first12=Ian D. |last13=Kansour |first13=Mayada K. |last14=Lawrence |first14=Timothy |last15=Lee |first15=Charles K. |last16=Lee |first16=Patrick K.H. |last17=Leopold |first17=Matthias |last18=Leung |first18=Marcus H.Y. |last19=Maki |first19=Teruya |last20=McKay |first20=Christopher P. |last21=Al Mailem |first21=Dina M. |last22=Ramond |first22=Jean-Baptiste |last23=Rastrojo |first23=Alberto |last24=Šantl-Temkiv |first24=Tina |last25=Sun |first25=Henry J. |last26=Tong |first26=Xinzhao |last27=Vandenbrink |first27=Bryan |last28=Warren-Rhodes |first28=Kimberley A. |last29=Pointing |first29=Stephen B. |title=Contribution of soil bacteria to the atmosphere across biomes |journal=Science of the Total Environment |date=May 2023 |volume=871 |pages=162137 |doi=10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162137 |pmid=36775167 |bibcode=2023ScTEn.87162137A |hdl=10486/707035 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> The effects on climate and cloud chemistry of these atmospheric populations is still under review.

[[NASA]] and other research agencies are studying how long these bioaerosols can remain afloat and how they can survive in such extreme climates. The conditions of the upper atmosphere are similar to the climate on Mars' surface, and the microbes found are helping redefine the conditions which can support life.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tabor |first=Abigail |date=2018-11-19 |title=What is NASA's Aerobiology Lab? |url=http://www.nasa.gov/ames/aerobiology |website=NASA}}</ref>