Atmospheric Methane: Sources, Sinks, and Role in Global Change (Nato ASI Subseries I:, 13)

Methane plays many important roles in the earth's environment. It is a potent "greenhouse gas" that warms the earth; controls the oxidizing capacity of the atmosphere (OH) indirectly affecting the cycles and abundances of many atmospheric trace gases; provides water vapor to the stratosphere; scavenges chlorine atoms from the stratosphere, terminating the catalytic ozone destruction by chlorine atoms, including the chlorine released from the man-made chlorofluorocarbons; produces ozone, CO, and CO2 in the troposphere; and it is an index of life on earth and so is present in greater quantities during warm interglacial epochs and dwindles to low levels during the cold of ice ages. By all measures, methane is the second only to CO2 in causing future global warming. The book presents a comprehensive account of the current understanding of atmospheric methane, and it is an end point for summarizing more than a decade of intensive research on the global sources, sinks, concentrations, and environmental role of methane. Front Matter....Pages I-IX An Introduction to Atmospheric Methane....Pages 1-6 Measurement and Research Techniques....Pages 7-37 The Record of Atmospheric Methane....Pages 38-61 Isotopic Abundances in the Atmosphere and Sources....Pages 62-88 Atmospheric Methane Concentrations....Pages 89-101 Biological Formation and Consumption of Methane....Pages 102-127 Formation and Consumption of Methane....Pages 128-137 Stable Isotopes and Global Budgets....Pages 138-167 Methane Sinks Distribution....Pages 168-179 Sources of Methane: An Overview....Pages 180-198 Ruminants and Other Animals....Pages 199-229 Rice Agriculture: Emissions....Pages 230-253 Rice Agriculture: Factors Controlling Emissions....Pages 254-298 Biomass Burning....Pages 299-313 Wetlands....Pages 314-361 Waste Management....Pages 362-398 Industrial Sources....Pages 399-431 Minor Sources of Methane....Pages 432-456 Sources and Sinks of Methane....Pages 457-468 The Role of Methane in the Global Environment....Pages 469-513 The Current and Future Environmental Role of Atmospheric Methane: Model Studies and Uncertainties....Pages 514-531 Back Matter....Pages 533-563 This is a detailed account of the current scientific understanding of atmospheric methane, a potent "greenhouse" gas which plays an important role in the environment. The contributors discuss the global sources and concentrations of methane, and its role in global warming.