Substantial global influence of anthropogenic aerosols on tropical cyclones over the past 40 years

However, it is not yet clear how the changes in anthropogenic aerosols have altered global tropical cyclone (TC) activity. In this study, we reveal that the decreases in aerosols over Europe and the United States have contributed to significant decreases in TCs over the Southern Hemisphere as well as increases in TCs over the North Atlantic, whereas the increases in aerosols in South and East Asia have exerted substantial decreases in TCs over the western North Pacific.

These results suggest that how society controls future emissions of anthropogenic aerosols will exert a substantial impact on the world's TC activity.