CO has a lifetime of about two months in the atmosphere. For example, Daniel Jacob at Harvard University will use measurements of CO in his study of how pollution in Asia affects the United States. The source of this CO probably comes from coal burning in China or burning of forests in Indonesia. It will be of unique value for improving our understanding of transcontinental transport of air pollutants. This figure shows the earth's surface temperatures on March 12-13, 2000.
Red colors indicate high temperatures, as seen over the African deserts.
Blues show low surface temperatures, both at the polar regions and in areas covered by high clouds. Some aircraft measurements have hinted that although there is a strong seasonal variation in both methane and CO at the surface, that may not be the case a few hundred feet above the ground. OH- reacts quickly with pollutants to transform these noxious compounds into more harmless forms. Its quick reaction time, however, means that only small amounts of it are in the atmosphere at any time, so it is hard to measure directly. Most of the CO in the atmosphere eventually reacts with OH- to form carbon dioxide and water vapor, and so does some of the methane.