Results from a study of clouds and aerosols conducted in the Azores revealed that new particles can seed the formation of clouds in the marine boundary layer--the atmosphere up to about a kilometer above Earth's surface--even over the open ocean, where the concentration of precursor gases was expected to be low. Credit: U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility. Read Time: New results from an atmospheric study over the Eastern North Atlantic reveal that tiny aerosol particles that seed the formation of clouds can form out of next to nothingness over the open ocean. This ânew particle formationâ occurs when sunlight reacts with molecules of trace gases in the marine boundary layer, the atmosphere within about the first kilometer above Earthâs surface. The findings, published in the journal Nature Communications, will improve how aerosols and clouds are represented in models that describe Earthâs climate so scientists can understand how the particlesâand the processes that control themâmight have affected the planetâs past and present, and make better predictions about the future.