Earth is covered with a layer of volcanic dust, pollution and other aerosol particles that act as a sunscreen protecting the Earth from the powerful rays of the Sun and also combating Global Warming.
Since the 1990s, this layer is fast depleting, exposing the Earth to the Sun. This has caused the rise in the global surface temperature of Earth.
NASA has conducted a study using records dating back to 1978 from satellites originally designed to observe clouds and weather systems. These results have shown large short-lived spikes in global aerosols caused by major volcanic eruptions in 1982 and 1991 but a gradual decline since 1990.
By 2005 global aerosols had dropped as much as 20% from relatively stable levels from 1986 and 1991.
These results have also been helpful in studying the amounts of sunlight on Earth. This has shown that the amount has seen a gradual increase since 1990 after years of declining. This switch from Global Dimming to Global Brightening has happened at the same time as the change in aerosol levels.
This increased sunlight has had a major effect on Global Warming.
Via: CBC
