Understanding the Temporal and Spatial Variation of Air Quality to Support the Use of Satellite Aerosol Data

Outdoor air pollution can have severe impacts on human health, endangering the lives of vulnerable children and adults. Particulate matter (PM) air pollution is particularly hazardous, contributing to an estimated 800,000 premature deaths every year, as recorded by the World Health Organization (WHO). Organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have an increasing need to provide accurate air quality assessments to properly mitigate adverse health effects. The EPA monitors air quality levels for the United States with AirNow, an on-line tool that uses in situ data to calculate an Air Quality Index (AQI) for real-time updates and forecasts in air quality. This product allows for reliable air quality estimates but is limited to the specific location of monitoring stations and to terrestrial regions within the contiguous United States. Though current projections estimate that approximately 48% of the US population will live in coastal regions by the year 2020, there is no long-term record of air quality measurements for the coastal United States. This project will utilize the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Aerosol Optical Thickness (AOT) datasets to create a long-term analysis of Hawaii and coastal Florida air quality from January 1981 to December 2015. This analysis will be used to identify anomalous months, seasons, and other periods as well as identify trends in aerosol concentrations and patterns. Satellite and ground station data verification will provide statistical and quantitative support for incorporating satellite data into both the EPA's and CDC's current air quality reporting efforts and further serve their needs by building the foundation for a comprehensive air quality tool.

Location

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information

Term

Summer 2016

Partner(s)

US Environmental Protection Agency
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

NASA Earth Observations

NOAA-7/15/19, AVHRR
Aqua/Terra, MODIS

Team

Christie Stevens (Project Lead)
Toni Strauch
Alec Courtright

Advisor(s)

Annette Hollingshead (Global Science & Technology, Inc.)
DeWayne Cecil (Global Science & Technology, Inc.)
Jesse Bell (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Project Video