Well, hello, welcome back. My name is Stephanie Safarian and you're listening to

another headline episode of Sustainable Minimalists. If you're new here, we do

headlines differently. It's a different type of episode. On headlines I'm covering

need to know environmental news stories in 15-ish minutes or less. So let's get right into the big story. Perhaps you heard

something about it in the news this week. It has to do with plastics and it has to do

with clouds. Yes, it's true. A group of researchers recently found microplastics in the clouds above Mount Fuji.

Now, fun little fact here, back when I was young and cool, I hiked Mount Fuji in the middle of the night so that I could see the sunrise from the top.

It was one of the best experiences of my young life. I'm not young and cool anymore now I'm old and

curmudgeonly. But yes researchers found material that's used in many

plastic products such as clear food wrap shopping bags and detergent bottles in clouds above Mount Fuji.

Now how did they get there? Well first of all let's just say that many of us

regard microplastics as round, as spherical, right? But they're not. Many of the

particles are shaped less like a ball and more like a ribbon so flat and long and this flatter

shape explains why these microplastics are able to travel vast distances and end up in the most remotest of places.

The microplastics in the clouds above Mount Fuji were mainly transported from the ocean.

The researchers believe that these very fine marine

microplastics were dispersed into the atmosphere from waves

splashing into the air. Now when a microplastic is long and flat like a ribbon it's also light so it can

travel, it can almost, dare I say, fly. Now what are the implications of microplastics and clouds? Well we aren't

quite sure yet but researchers believe these airborne microplastics can and will influence cloud formation and if clouds are influenced

the climate is also influenced.

When a plastic is degraded it can provide a surface for water to latch onto and this

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