First Images from NASA Satellite Tracking Air Pollution
NASA’s new air pollution spacecraft, named TEMPO, has started its mission months after its launch. Here are the details!
A new NASA satellite designed to monitor air pollution from space has shared its first images showing how it can monitor ai pollution.
The satellite, named TEMPO, was launched in April and observes the Earth from its orbit 22,000 miles above the equator.
TEMPO can measure airpollution with high resolution down to a few square miles and show pollution changes over short periods of time. This will allow it to collect data on factors that affect airpollution, such as rush hour traffic or smoke from forest fires.
“Neighborhoods and communities across the country will benefit from TEMPO’s game-changing data for decades to come,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement.
First Images from TEMPO
The first images from TEMPO were shared with a series of visualizations, including two pollution maps showing the area around Los Angeles between noon and evening on the same day. The maps below show nitrogen dioxide levels in the air on August 2, with darker colors representing higher levels.
Other visualizations show pollution around major urban areas such as New York, Washington, Houston and New Orleans.
NASA researcher Dr. Michelle Thaller expressed her strong belief in the existence of extraterrestrial life in an interview at the “Beyond the Light” exhibition at Artechouse in New York.
Once fully operational, TEMPO will conduct hourly scans during daylight hours, covering an area stretching from central Canada to the United States and Mexico City.
