Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
At least 80 dead, 11 girls from camp still missing after catastrophic flooding in Texas. Read the latest Chevron right
Chantal moving inland after making landfall in South Carolina. Get details Chevron right

Columbus, OH

92°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

92°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Climate

Microplastics could trigger cloud formation and affect the weather, new study suggests

By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

Published Nov 15, 2023 11:47 AM EDT | Updated Nov 16, 2023 4:10 PM EDT

Copied

Sunset scenery at Mount Tai in Tai'an, east China's Shandong Province on May 23, 2018. (Jia Guangrui/SIPA/Zuma)

(CNN) — Microplastics are turning up in unusual places increasingly often as they filter into nearly every facet of life on Earth. They’ve been discovered in drinking water, food, air and even in blood. Now, scientists have found that these tiny particles might even be able to influence the weather.

Researchers reported Wednesday they detected microplastics in a majority of cloud samples taken from a mountaintop in China, in a study published in the American Chemical Society’s Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

The study traced how the microplastics ended up at their final location and discovered that they could play a role in cloud formation.

What are microplastics?

Microplastics collected from the sea near Barcelona, Spain, are shown under a microscope on July 5, 2022.

Microplastics collected from the sea near Barcelona, Spain, are shown under a microscope on July 5, 2022.

Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic that are no larger than five millimeters, which is about the size of a single sesame seed. And they are everywhere, according to Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics, a group working to end plastic pollution.

“Microplastics are in the air we breathe, they’re in our drinking water, they’re in our bodies,” Enck told CNN.

Microplastics form when larger plastics break down, either by chemically degrading or physically wearing down into smaller pieces.

“If it’s plastic, you’re going to get microplastics sooner or later,” Enck said.

The smaller a microplastic is, the easier it can move through environmental cycles – like the water cycle – and ultimately end up in the human body, where its effects are worrisome but still unclear.

Most experts believe more research is needed to determine the full impact of microplastics on human health, but studies have shown that there are already some demonstrable adverse health impacts.

How could microplastics affect the weather?

The authors of Wednesday’s study found microplastics affect cloud formation, and clouds are of huge importance to the weather we experience.

Clouds produce precipitation in the form of rain, snow and everything in between. They also block sunlight, and less solar radiation means cooler temperatures.

In order for a cloud to form, water vapor – a gas – needs to turn into water droplets – a liquid. Then, many water droplets need to come together to become a cloud.

Water droplets form when water vapor interacts with tiny solid particles in the atmosphere, like dust, ash or salt from the ocean. According to the study, microplastics can now be added to that list.

These particles are hydrophilic, which means they are attracted to water. Once the first water droplets cling to microplastics and other tiny particles, more water droplets are pulled together and clouds form.

The process is akin to how a single spark can eventually set an entire field ablaze: One tiny particle in the atmosphere can set into motion a process that becomes something much bigger.

According to the study’s authors, further research must be completed to fully understand the extent to which microplastics influence cloud formation.

Could a greater concentration of microplastics lead to more clouds? Will an increase in clouds lead to more precipitation or larger swaths of cooler conditions? These questions remain unanswered.

How do microplastics get into the atmosphere?

Microplastics are tiny and light enough to get picked up by the wind and hoisted into the atmosphere.

The study’s authors found samples of microplastics in the air over Mount Tai in China, and developed computer models to recreate the journey those particles would have had to take to end up there. The models suggested that the flow of air from nearby highly populated inland Chinese cities served as a major source of the microplastics.

This suggests microplastics produced at ground level were lofted and carried large distances.

There are more microplastics found in cities than rural areas, in general, since a higher population density often leads to a higher demand for plastic products. However, rural areas are quickly catching up with microplastic production, according to Enck.

More to read:

5 key takeaways from the US climate report
Greenland glaciers are in trouble, threatening 'dramatic' consequences
Company pulls the plug on 2 major offshore wind projects on East Coast

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Report a Typo

Weather News

Weather News

At least 80 dead in Texas, 11 girls at Camp Mystic missing in flooding

Jul. 6, 2025
video

Rescue operations underway after deadly Texas flooding

Jul. 6, 2025
video

What led to the deadly flooding in central Texas?

Jul. 6, 2025
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble in the central US through the holiday weekend

Jul. 6, 2025
Weather News

Record sargassum seaweed piles up on Caribbean islands, Gulf

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather News

At least 80 dead in Texas, 11 girls at Camp Mystic missing in flooding

21 minutes ago

Hurricane

Chantal moving farther inland after making landfall in South Carolina

2 hours ago

Weather News

Severe weather to storm through Plains, Upper Midwest this week

2 hours ago

Severe Weather

Storms kill 3 in New Jersey, knock out power across Northeast

2 days ago

Weather Forecasts

Heat, humidity return to the East

2 hours ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Weather News

Wildfires are tearing through a popular tourist hotspot in Greece

2 days ago

Weather News

‘Shark Whisperer’ swims its way into our shark obsession

1 day ago

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

5 days ago

Weather News

France leads Europe in saying au revoir to beach and park smoking

3 days ago

Health

There is no safe amount of processed meat to eat, new research shows

3 days ago

AccuWeather Climate Microplastics could trigger cloud formation and affect the weather, new study suggests
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...