Pollution In China Is So Bad You Can See It From Space
Tuesday, January 21, 2014 - 20:00
in Earth & Climate
How bad is pollution in China? So bad you can see it from space.Wait, can't you do that in the US? Anyone who has flown into Los Angeles in the morning surely sees pollution. This is different. And worse. Plumes of several anthropogenic pollutants, especially particulate matter and carbon monoxide, at ground level over China can now be detected from space - something that was only possible higher up previously. The team used measurements by the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer on board the MetOp satellite and the findings represent a crucial step towards improved monitoring of regional pollution and forecasting of local pollution episodes, especially in China. read more