Gas-Discharge Method for Improving the Environmental Characteristics of the Atmosphere (In memory of G.A. Askar’yan).

The possibility of improving the environmental characteristics of the atmosphere with the help of freely localized microwave discharges is analyzed. Theoretical and experimental studies devoted to cleaning the troposphere of ozone-destroying pollutants and creating an artificial ozone layer in the stratosphere are reviewed. Results from the studies of the possibility of the plasmochemical utilization of the accumulated chlorofluorocarbons, capable of depleting the ozone layer, are presented. The results of theoretical and experimental modeling are used to predict the plasmochemical consequences of creating artificial ionized regions in the atmosphere for the purpose of long-range radio and TV communication.