The British Ecological Society and U.S. National Science Foundation have come out with a report stating that dust in the wind is hastening the snowmelt timings in the mountains. The scientists believe because of global warming larger desert areas are getting drier and stirring up more dust into the air. Human activiies have also increased in those areas. The winds carry with it dust all over, including snow covered mountains. Layer of dust on the snow darkens the surface, causing more sunlight to be absorbed that would have been reflected by the white snow.... Because of this, increased temperature would begin to melt snow earlier in the spring than in the past. The water would thus run-off before the air was warm enough for plants to start growing...
... According to the researchers dust levels in the mountains are about five times greater than they were prior to mid-19th century....
...... The change in timing of the snowmelt and changes in plant growth may effect the composition of the species in the mountains. Some species may increase while others may be lost according to lead author Heidi Steltzer, a research scientist at Colorado State University. The composition of the meadows would change too.
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