Global Atmosphere Watch was mere scientific interest, but of course, many scientists eventually wondered what effects these trace chemicals could have on the atmosphere, and on life. The GAW's genesis began as far back as the 1950s when the World Meteorological Organization began a programme of monitoring the atmosphere for trace chemicals, and also researching air pollution from a meteorological point of view. They were also responsible for monitoring ozone, establishing the Global Ozone Observing System (GO3OS) in 1957, in the International Geophysical Year. In 1968, the United Nations called for an international conference to address world environmental problems caused by rapid industrialization.
Atmosphere of Mercury pushes neutral atoms away from Mercury, creating a comet-like tail behind it. The main component in the tail is sodium, which has been detected beyond 24 million km (1000 R) from the planet. This sodium tail expands rapidly to a diameter of about 20,000 km at a distance of 17,500 km. In 2009, "MESSENGER" also detected calcium and magnesium in the tail, although these elements were only observed at distances less than 8 R. Atmosphere of Mercury Mercury has a very tenuous and highly variable atmosphere (surface-bound exosphere) containing hydrogen, helium, oxygen, sodium, calcium, potassium and water vapor, with a