In the atmosphere, individual soot particles emitted from human activities often encounter and combine with organic material, forming soot-containing particles. A research team led by scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/EMSL and Michigan Technological University established a link between the viscosity of the organic material and its distribution within the soot-containing particle. This mixing configuration is important because it alters the particles’ ability to absorb and scatter solar radiation.