NASA has sent the Temposatellite into orbit to monitor air pollution. Photo: Courtesy of NASA
Pasadena, California: Over the years, NASA has built and launched several satellites to monitor land and air pollution, and now a new satellite named Tempo will monitor North America.
The ‘Tropospheric Emission Monitoring of Pollution Instrument’ or TEMPO will compare the changing atmosphere from one country to another or region to region. Its sensors will mainly measure three dangerous gases or components, including nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and ozone levels near the ground. It should be noted that increased amount of ozone is found in smog.
Three of the eight states in the continental United States have smog levels so high that they are classified as F-grade. Lung diseases are also common in these countries and poverty is rampant. NASA expert John Hines said that there are oil factories in the areas where the air pollution is very high. However, ground sensors and monitors are not available everywhere and Tempo has been launched under this requirement.
The Tempo satellite, while in geostationary orbit, will remain suspended in one place and thus record pollution at one place. However, it may take a few months for Tapmo’s data to reach the public as it opens up all its devices in May or June.
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