While the effects of power plant emissions,vehicle exhaust and other manmade aerosols on air quality and public health are famous, their impact on the climate is not totally understood. Scientists have shown that aerosols can lower surface temperatures either directly, or by reflecting sunlight skyward,or indirectly, by increasing the reflectivity of clouds, and but until now have not figured out the role these airborne particles play in shaping the distribution of rain and snowfall around the world.
Source: phys.org