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Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of the current knowledge on aerosols in the marine atmosphere and the effects of aerosols on climate and on processes in the oceanic surface layer. Aerosol particles in the marine atmosphere originate predominantly from direct production at the sea surface due to the interaction between wind and waves (sea spray aerosol, or SSA) and indirect production by gas to particle conversion. These aerosols are supplemented by aerosols produced over the continents, as well as aerosols emitted by volcanoes and ship traffic, a large part of it being deposited to the ocean surface by dry and wet deposition. The SSA sources, chemical composition and ensuing physical and optical effects, are discussed. An overview is presented of continental sources and their ageing and mixing processes during transport. The current status of our knowledge on effects of marine aerosols on the Earth radiative balance, both direct by their interaction with solar radiation and indirect through their effects on cloud properties, is discussed. The deposition on the ocean surface of some key species, such as nutrients, their bioavailability and how they impact biogeochemical cycles are shown and discussed through different time and space scales approaches.