Papers

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Article Tier 2

Vi nhựa được phát hiện trong các đám mây trên đỉnh núi Phú Sĩ và Oyama Nhật Bản

This Vietnamese science communication article reports on a study finding microplastics in clouds around Mount Fuji and Mount Oyama in Japan at elevations of 1,300 to 3,776 meters. The discovery of microplastics in clouds at high altitude demonstrates that plastic particles can travel through the atmosphere and be deposited by rain in even the most remote environments.

2023
Article Tier 2

Airborne hydrophilic microplastics in cloud water at high altitudes and their role in cloud formation

Researchers collected cloud water from mountain summits in Japan at altitudes up to 3,776 meters and found microplastics in every sample, including common types like polyethylene and polypropylene. Many of the particles showed signs of degradation and contained water-attracting chemical groups, suggesting they could influence cloud formation by acting as condensation nuclei. The study raises the possibility that airborne microplastics may be affecting weather patterns and climate at a global scale.

2023 Environmental Chemistry Letters 100 citations
Article Tier 2

Researchers find microplastics in clouds

Scientists found microplastics in cloud water collected from two Japanese mountains, identifying nine types of plastic particles at concentrations of 7-14 pieces per liter. This discovery suggests microplastics may travel long distances through the atmosphere via clouds, potentially spreading pollution far from its original sources.

2023 C&EN Global Enterprise 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Origins and ecological risk of atmospheric microplastics at a remote background site in Japan

Atmospheric microplastics collected at a high-altitude site were traced to both local and long-range transport origins, revealing the broad geographical spread of airborne plastic particles. The ecological risk assessment found potential impacts on vulnerable high-elevation ecosystems far from pollution sources.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Precipitation: Analyzing Altitudinal Influence on Atmospheric Deposition Patterns

Researchers found an inverse relationship between altitude and microplastic deposition in Central Himalayan precipitation, collecting rainfall and snowfall across eight sites from 445 m to 3,378 m elevation and characterizing microplastics by concentration, size distribution, and polymer composition.

2025 Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology
Article Tier 2

Preliminary assessment on the microplastic contamination in the atmospheric fallout in the Phuoc Hiep landfill, Cu Chi, Ho Chi Minh city

Researchers collected atmospheric fallout near a landfill in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and found microplastics present, with abundances comparable to studies from developed countries. The study provides early evidence of airborne microplastic deposition near waste sites in developing countries, where plastic waste management is often inadequate.

2020 Ministry of Science and Technology Vietnam 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Elevated wet deposition of micro- and nanoplastics in remote mountains driven by free tropospheric transport

Researchers measured micro- and nanoplastic (MNP) concentrations in rainfall at a remote high-elevation mountain site in southern China, finding concentrations nearly three times higher than at a nearby urban low-altitude site, demonstrating that the free troposphere acts as a long-range transport pathway that delivers significant plastic loads to pristine environments.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric microplastics in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean: Distribution, source, and deposition

Researchers documented atmospheric microplastic distribution in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean, finding abundances ranging from 0.0046 to higher levels and identifying sources and deposition patterns that contribute to marine microplastic pollution from airborne transport.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 153 citations
Article Tier 2

A review of microplastics pollution and its remediation methods: Current scenario and future aspects

Researchers measured microplastic concentrations in atmospheric deposition at remote mountain sites in the Pyrenees, detecting an average of 365 particles per square meter per day. The findings confirm long-range atmospheric transport of microplastics far from pollution sources.

2022 Archives of Agriculture and Environmental Science 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Characterization of Microplastics in Clouds over Eastern China

Researchers collected cloud water samples from a mountain in eastern China and found an average of 463 microplastic particles per liter, with 60% smaller than 100 micrometers. The study found that surface roughening from photochemical aging likely increased the microplastics' ability to adsorb toxic metals such as lead and mercury. Evidence indicates that airborne microplastics may influence atmospheric metal cycles and cloud formation processes.

2023 Environmental Science & Technology Letters 33 citations
Article Tier 2

Importance of atmospheric transport for microplastics deposited in remote areas

This study highlights atmospheric transport as a significant and underappreciated pathway for depositing micro- and nanoplastics in remote areas including mountain regions and polar zones far from plastic sources. Airborne plastic particles can travel thousands of kilometers before being deposited, explaining the presence of microplastics in seemingly pristine remote environments.

2019 Environmental Pollution 317 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantifying Atmospheric Deposition of Microplastics in Urban and Suburban O'ahu

Researchers quantified atmospheric deposition of microplastics across urban and suburban sites on O'ahu, Hawaii, characterising deposition rates and particle composition to assess airborne microplastic transport in a Pacific island environment.

2025 ScholarSpace (University of Hawaii at Manoa)
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in mountain terrains and foothills: A review on source, extraction, and distribution of microplastics in remote areas

This review examines microplastic pollution in mountain terrains and foothills, finding that atmospheric transport and tourism are major sources, with snow samples containing the highest concentrations compared to streams or ice cores.

2021 Environmental Research 161 citations
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric deposition of microplastics in an urban conglomerate near to the foothills of Indian Himalayas: Investigating the quantity, chemical character, possible sources and transport mechanisms

Scientists measured microplastic fallout from the air near the foothills of the Indian Himalayas and found an average of over 2,200 particles landing per square meter per day. Levels spiked during the Diwali festival, suggesting that human activities significantly increase airborne microplastic pollution. The findings show that even areas near remote mountain regions receive substantial microplastic deposits from the atmosphere, which people in those communities inhale.

2024 Environmental Pollution 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau: Evidence for the long-range transport of microplastics

Researchers discovered microplastics in glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau, one of the most remote regions on Earth. The presence of plastic particles at such high altitudes and far from population centers provides strong evidence that microplastics can travel long distances through the atmosphere, making this a truly global pollution problem.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 352 citations
Article Tier 2

Evidence of free tropospheric and long-range transport of microplastic at Pic du Midi Observatory

Researchers found microplastic particles in the free troposphere at nearly 2,900 meters elevation at Pic du Midi Observatory, with air trajectory modeling showing intercontinental and trans-oceanic transport, demonstrating that microplastics can travel vast distances through the upper atmosphere.

2021 Nature Communications 242 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigating microplastic transport in remote ecosystems: High-mountain lakes of the western alps

Researchers investigated microplastic transport to and accumulation in high-mountain lakes in remote ecosystems, using atmospheric deposition measurements and lake sediment analysis. Even at elevations above human habitation, microplastics were deposited from the atmosphere, with concentrations tracking regional air circulation patterns.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Plastics in Upper Vicdessos - Bridging the gapS for a better understanding of atmospheric microplastics in mountain environments (PVC#2)

Researchers investigated atmospheric microplastic deposition in the upper Vicdessos mountain environment of the French Pyrenees, aiming to bridge knowledge gaps about microplastic transport and accumulation in remote montane areas. The study contributed field data toward better understanding the atmospheric pathways by which microplastics reach high-altitude environments far from direct pollution sources.

2024 SPIRE - Sciences Po Institutional REpository 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic in atmospheric fallouts of a developing Southeast Asian megacity under tropical climate

A year-long monitoring study of atmospheric microplastic fallout in a Southeast Asian megacity found deposition rates of 71–917 items/m²/day dominated by fibers, with no significant correlation with rainfall or wind — contrary to patterns seen in temperate climate studies.

2021 Chemosphere 136 citations
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric microplastic over the South China Sea and East Indian Ocean: abundance, distribution and source

Researchers measured atmospheric microplastic abundance across 21 transects from coastal China to the East Indian Ocean and found that concentrations near the Pearl River Estuary were ten times higher than over the open ocean, with backward trajectory modeling suggesting long-range atmospheric transport exceeding 1,000 km but indicating that atmospheric deposition is unlikely to be the primary source of oceanic microplastic contamination.

2019 Journal of Hazardous Materials 318 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics ride the atmosphere

Research confirms that microplastic particles are transported through the atmosphere over long distances, depositing in remote areas including the Arctic and high mountains. Atmospheric transport is now recognized as a major pathway spreading microplastic contamination to virtually every part of the planet.

2020 C&EN Global Enterprise 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the Himalayan environment: a review of sources, atmospheric inputs, and subsurface pathways

This review synthesizes current knowledge on microplastic contamination in the Himalayan environment, examining sources including tourism and agriculture, atmospheric transport pathways, and subsurface migration routes that explain how MPs reach these remote high-altitude ecosystems.

2025 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Remote Mountainous Area Inevitably Becomes Temporal Sink for Microplastics Driven by Atmospheric Transport

A 13-month study of an uninhabited mountainous area in China found microplastics in the air at respirable sizes year-round, with 15 different polymer types detected. Atmospheric modeling traced the sources to populated areas hundreds of kilometers away, showing that wind can carry microplastics to even the most remote locations. The findings mean that virtually no place on Earth is free from airborne microplastic exposure.

2024 Environmental Science & Technology 19 citations
Article Tier 2

Airborne microplastics in urban, rural and wildland environments on the Tibetan Plateau

Researchers measured airborne microplastic concentrations across urban, rural, and remote wildland sites on the Tibetan Plateau and found microplastics present at all locations, even in pristine high-altitude environments. Urban areas had the highest concentrations, but the presence of microplastics in remote wilderness areas demonstrates long-range atmospheric transport. The study provides some of the first data on airborne microplastic pollution in one of the world's most isolated high-mountain regions.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 62 citations