The Astrophysical Methods for Long-Term Monitoring of the CO2 Content in the Earth Atmosphere

We alert the astronomers carrying high-resolution observations of the Sun to a possibility to study global changes in the composition of the Earth atmosphere and other atmospheric characteristics using spectra containing telluric lines. This possibility is illustrated by solar observations carried in Moscow in visible and near infrared spectrum. A comparison of equivalent widths O2 (λ6295 ) and CO2 (λ20,700 ) lines, recorded with a spectrograph on the large vertical solar telescope ATB-1 at the Sternberg State Astronomical Institute from 1969 to 2007 reveals that during this period oxygen content in atmosphere above Moscow remained constant (within the limits of observational accuracy) whereas the carbon dioxide content increased significantly.