Crutzen, Paul J.
Paul J. Crutzen (1933-), a Dutch meteorologist renowned for his analysis of chemical interactions of trace gases and trace components in the atmosphere. In 1995, Crutzen, M.J. Molina and F.S. Rowland together won the Nobel Prize for their work on the depletion of the ozone layer. In 1970, Crutzen demonstrated that chemical compounds of nitrogen oxides (NOx) accelerate the destruction of stratospheric ozone. He showed that nonreactive nitrous oxide (N2O), produced naturally by soil bacteria, rises into the stratosphere, where solar energy splits it into two reactive compounds, nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). These compounds, which remain active for some time, react catalytically with ozone (O3), breaking it down into molecular oxygen (O2). Crutzen acted as Executive Director of the Max-Planck-Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany from 1983-1985, is Professor at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, La Jolla, USA, and is Professor Emeritus in the Division of Atmospheric Chemistry at Utrecht University, Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, The Netherlands.
Further Reading
- Max Planck Institute for Chemistry. Homepage of Professor Paul J. Crutzen.
- Nobel Foundation. Paul Crutzen - Autobiography.
