UAF helps develop air quality data for popular Alaska wildfire website
Featuring HAQAST Member Jingqiu Mao
A new interactive map developed in partnership with the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the Alaska Fire Service allows users to quickly and easily understand where Alaskan wildlife smoke is headed. It features current air quality conditions and forecasts.
A First Look From NASA’s New Air Pollution Satellite
Featuring HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway
The satellite will stay parked above North America and provide scientists with hourly daytime updates on air pollution nationwide. On August 24th, researchers released their first images, which show changes in nitrogen dioxide pollution over the United States over the course of a day.
Helping Our Personnel Breathe Easier: Partnering With NASA to Expand Reliable Air Quality Data
Featuring work from the HAQAST Team
A Department of State team comprised of representatives from policy, management, medical, and regional bureaus visited the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center on June 1st to meet with NASA scientists about our ongoing collaboration to provide U.S. diplomatic posts with air quality data.
Wildfire exposure linked to higher risk for death after lung cancer surgery
Featuring HAQAST Ambassador Leticia M. Nogueira
Discusses at study that shows the effects of wildfires on patients recovering from lung cancer surgery, showing they have worse survival outcomes than their unexposed counterparts.
The long term effects of repeated exposure to the smoke and haze from Canadian wildfires
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
Radio interview discussing the raging wildfires in Canada have been causing a smokey haze in the D.C. region this summer — and how it doesn’t appear to be getting better, and what this means for the long term health of the people living there.
Special Webinar for the International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
The UN General Assembly declared July 12 to be the International Day for Combating Sand and Dust Storms. You can access the special webinar with it’s round table of experts on sand and dust storms here. HAQAST PI Daniel Tong was also asked to record a brief statement on these issues and you can find his statement here.
Looking to Solve Real-World Air Quality Issues
Featuring HAQAST Outreach Coordinator Jenny Bratburd
Monitoring oil and gas emissions; how to use data from a new NASA mission; combining air pollution data with information on household income – these are just a few of the research topics chosen for support by the NASA Health and Air Quality program area.
UW-Madison scientist predicts an increase in smoky days in the future
Featuring HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway
Tracey Holloway was featured in two TV segments, What’s in the smoke? and UW-Madison scientist predicts an increase in smoky days in the future, to explain the recent air quality concerns and what the future may look like.
Wildfires Will Only Get Worse. We Need Satellite Tracking of Air Pollution
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
Satellite monitoring of air quality could help reduce premature death from smoke exposure.
How deadly are dust storms? New research shows they cause more crashes than previously recorded
Featuring HAQAST PI Danial Tong
Dust storms can prove deadly to drivers, causing panic and loss of visibility. Danial Tong and his team shed light on crashes related to dust storm events, providing new data and suggestions for future reporting.
Brighter Neighborhoods Harm Human Health
Featuring HAQAST PI Qian Xiao
A recent study published by Qian Xiao and her team, found an association between the light exposure at night and human health. Namely, brighter neighbors experienced higher risk of breast cancer. The risk disproportionality impacts poorer, non-white communities as they are more likely to live in brighter neighborhoods. Explore the group’s toolkit here.
No Breathing Easy for City Dwellers: Nitrogen Dioxide (Image of the day)
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenburg
This ground breaking research connects ‘health outcomes in cities around the world to satellite and ground-based data on air pollution’ for the first time.
Martin named Raymond R. Tucker Distinguished Professor
HAQAST member Randall Martin has been named as the Raymond R. Tucker Distinguished Professor at the Washington University in St. Louis. This recognition honors Raymond Tucker a former St. Louis mayor, professor, and Environmentalist. It speaks to Martin’s deep commitment to researching and improving air quality and health.
HAQAST PI Susan Anenburg has been selected as the new chair for the George Washington University Department of Environmental and Occupational Health. This position speaks to her outstanding achievements in the fields of climate and health.
Madison to use low-cost sensors to measure neighborhood air quality
With the help of a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the City of Madison and 3 community partners are implementing 68 air quality sensors throughout the city. This will give residents a real time understanding of particulate matter levels on the neighborhood scale. Tracey Holloway, a project advisor, notes that air quality can vary greatly on small scales, so this project will allow us to understand if certain areas are disproportionately impacted.
Air Pollution High at US Public Schools with Kids from Marginalized Groups
Air pollution can have significant health impacts especially for children, who have increased vulnerability. This study conducted by HAQAST PIs Susan Anenburg and Randall Martin among others, is the first of its kind—offering a report of ‘atmospheric fine particulate pollution and nitrogen dioxide exposure patterns at U.S. public schools’ at a nationwide scale.
Faces of Technology – Meet Emily Gargulinski
Meet Emily Gargulinski, a NASA Research Engineer at the National Institute of Aerospace. Emily watches fires from space. She uses geospatial data to evaluate what’s happening with fires on the ground. As part of her work with NASA Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team, or HAQAST, Emily is looking at the impact of small agricultural and range fires.
Six New Trustees Elected to the UCAR Board
HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway was recently elected to the board of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) which oversees the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). NCAR is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and seeks to provide resources including models tools, educational resources and facilities to atmospheric research scientists.
UW’s Tracey Holloway elected to National Academy of Medicine
HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway has been elected a member of the National Academy of Medicine. This honor recognizes her interdisciplinary approach to air quality, climate science, and public health.
LADCO works to understand the causes of ground level ozone pollution in the Great Lakes region. This page provides the state of the science information on ozone chemistry, sources, and mitigation strategies.
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg and Ambassador Pallavi Pant
Read full report and explore the interactive maps to learn more about air quality in your city, how it is changing, and the disease burdens associated with air pollution.
Using Data to Mitigate Inequitable Environmental Burdens
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Susan Anenberg and Qian Xiao
A new transdisciplinary special collection welcomes studies exploring data and tools for identifying and mitigating environmental injustice.
Dust-up over dust storm link to ‘Valley Fever’ disease
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Researchers are divided over whether rising cases of the fungal infection in the United States can be linked to dust storms.
How Does The Human Body React to Extreme Heat?
Featuring HAQAST PI Chris Uejio
Chris Uejio joins guest host Sophie Bushwick to talk about what high temperatures do to the body, and how we can protect our health and safety in a heat wave.
Clearer View of Great Lakes Air Quality (NASA Image of the Day)
The complex lake and land breezes and the atmospheric pressure differences across the Great Lakes region of North America can result in high levels of ozone pollution that are difficult to monitor or predict. Recently, air quality experts began incorporating more satellite data and customized models from NASA to better track that pollution. Their goal is to better inform local decision-making about how to improve air quality.
Featuring HAQAST PIs Susan Anenberg & Dan Goldberg
An analysis of air quality across the D.C. metro area reveals the disparities between neighborhoods divided by racial segregation. These disadvantaged areas additionally present with many times more visits to the emergency room for asthma, demonstrating the monumental health impacts.
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Tracey Holloway, Dan Goldberg, & Yang Liu
Health Effect Institute hosted a virtual workshop open to the general public to ‘identify opportunities for health application research using new and expected satellite remote sensing data’. HAQAST lead Tracey Holloway was a chair of the program and HAQAST PIs Dan Goldberg, and Yang Liu were among the presenters.
City Health Dashboard adds ozone data, with help from HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Starting today, users can now access two new measures: Air Pollution-Ozone and the Credit Insecurity Index. Adding these particular metrics is part of our ongoing mission at the Dashboard to develop more innovative and timely data sources and methods that seek to better demonstrate how physical, economic and social determinants impact health, particularly in cities.
No Breathing Easy for City Dwellers: Particulates (NASA Image of the Day)
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
Air pollution is the fourth leading risk factor for death around the world. But one type of pollutant is particularly harmful: fine particulate matter (PM2.5). These small, inhalable particles (less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter) result from direct emissions into the air, as well as interactions among other pollutants.
No Breathing Easy for City Dwellers: Nitrogen Dioxide (NASA Image of the Day)
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
NASA-funded scientists have, for the first time, connected health outcomes in cities around the world to satellite and ground-based data on air pollution. The researchers concluded that despite improvements in some parts of the world and for certain pollutants, air quality continues to be an important contributor to disease.
COVID-19 Lockdown Drove Pollution Changes Between – Even Within – Cities
Featuring HAQAST PI Randall Martin
New modeling method allows researchers to measure levels of NO2 on a finer scale, revealing disparities in exposure during COVID.
HAQAST Work Featured on NASA Health and Air Quality Webpage
The NASA Health & Air Quality program area provides policymakers with Earth observations to enhance decision-making about public health, and HAQAST is an integral part of this mission. We provide managers and policymakers with Earth observations that inform decisions about air quality standards, public policies and government regulations for economic and human welfare.
The Far-Reaching Consequences of Wildfire Smoke Plumes
Featuring HAQAST PI Jeffrey Pierce
Knowledge of wildfire smoke impacts is critical for researchers and public health experts going forward, as climate change continues to produce a warmer, drier western United States and the fire season is expected to become only longer and more intense. To fill this gap, Jeffrey Pierce and his team looked at smoke exposure across seasons and regions in the United States between 2006 and 2018.
An Extra Air Pollution Burden (NASA Image of the Day)
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Susan Anenberg and Randall Martin and Member Pat Kinney
Like many cities in the eastern United States, Washington, D.C., has seen major improvements in air quality in recent decades. Susan Anenberg, Pat Kinney, and Randall Martin have been able to shed light on these improvements and bring attention to their impact on health problems.
Scientific Questions Arrive in Ports (NASA Image of the Day)
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Goldberg
Due to COVID pandemic supply chain issues, many container ships were stuck in major ports. HAQAST PI’s Danial Goldberg and Susan Anenburg among others investigated this unusual activity to understand its impacts on NO2 concentrations in these areas.
NASA Smoke Signals for Air Quality
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan O’Neill
Susan O’Neill and her team developed a set of data tools as part of NASA’s 2017 California Wildfires Tiger Team which has reshaped the way scientists observe smoke from wildfires.
HAQAST Featured by NASA Applied Sciences
NASA Applied Sciences introduces the third installment of the Health and Air Quality Applied Science Team, which includes 14 principal investigators and a push to answer complex environmental problems.
HAQAST Announces Five Innovative Tiger Teams
In the 1960’s, NASA began using the term “Tiger Teams” for small, determined teams of experts to help solve complex problems. The tradition continues today, with the announcement of the third generation of Tiger Teams within the Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team.
Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change Policy Brief
Featuring HAQAST PI Yang Liu
This fifth annual Policy Brief is supported by a diverse group of health experts from over 70 institutions, organizations, and centers who recognize that climate change is first and foremost a health crisis. It uses recent scientific studies to expose the inequitable health risks of climate change, including work by Yang Liu.
Addressing Disparity of Clean Air in Marginalized Communities
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg and Member Gaige Kerr
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed deep-seated inequities in everything from safe working conditions and affordable health care to kids’ access to the internet for school. It also highlighted another alarming disparity that isn’t visible to the naked eye: access to clean air.
Integrating Satellite Data to Find Links Between Environment and Health
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Several obstacles stand in the way of integrating social, health, and Earth science data for vital geohealth studies, but Tong and his team promote tools and opportunities to overcome these obstacles.
Research Aims to Help Alaskans, Visitors Avoid Wildfire Smoke
Featuring HAQAST Member Jingqiu Mao
HAQAST Member Jingqiu Mao and colleagues will connect satellite data with health and air quality to support the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and others.
Tracey Holloway Highlighted by UW News
The University of Wisconsin – Madison highlights HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway’s efforts to bring space-based data to the world.
Featuring HAQAST PI Jeff Pierce
Need for better air quality monitoring is promoted by HAQAST Member Jeff Pierce and his team to inform Colorado residents about health impacts of long-range wildfire smoke.
Final Report for HAQAST 2016-2020 Released
5 years of HAQAST successes are culminated in this final report, with in-depth analysis of stakeholder growth, lessons learned, and next steps for the future.
HAQAST Helping the World to Breathe More Easily
HAQAST, along with NASA’s Health and Air Quality Program, is helping to lead the charge for global air quality.
NASA Satellite Data Show 30 Percent Drop In Air Pollution Over Northeast U.S.
Featuring HAQAST PI Bryan Duncan
Though further studies are needed, it appears that NO2 for March, 2020, is 30% lower than the 5-year March average, suggest new NASA research.
NASA Contributes to National Public Health Week
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Part of the HAQAST mandate is to build bridges between the air quality and public health communities. A host of NASA Earth researchers, including our own Daniel Tong, are doing just that.
UW Scientist Works to Improve Allergy Forecasting
Featuring HAQAST PI Jeremy Hess and Member Fiona Lo
Fiona Lo explains her work with Jeremy Hess using satellite data to forecast pollen season on Seattle TV news.
Jin & Fiore’s Research on Health Co-Benefits Widely Covered
Featuring HAQAST PI Arlene Fiore
Xiaomeng Jin and Arlene Fiore’s research on the public health benefits of reduced PM 2.5 exposure in New York State has been covered by media outlets in the US and internationally.
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Susan Anenberg and Bryan Duncan
This video explains how PM2.5 affects the health of people and is one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide.
Air Pollution Cuts Are Saving Lives in New York State
Featuring HAQAST PI Arlene Fiore
Columbia University highlights Arlene Fiore’s study on how reduced PM2.5 in New York State led to a decrease in mortality between 2002 and 2012.
America’s Skies Have Gotten Clearer, but Millions Still Breathe Unhealthy Air
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Bryan Duncan and Jason West
The New York Times drew on Bryan Duncan and Jason West’s Tiger Team work estimating health benefits of cleaner air in the US from 1990 to 2010.
Google Trends Could Help Scientists Track Allergy Season
Featuring HAQAST PI Jeremy Hess
Jeremy Hess’s work on pollen and allergies profiled by EOS.
The Seasonal Rhythms of Ammonia
Featuring HAQAST PI Mark Zondlo
Mark Zondlo’s work on the seasonal rhythm of NH3 profiled by NASA’s Image of the Day.
NASA Science Shows Human Impact of Clean Air Policies
Featuring HAQAST PI’s Jason West and Susan Anenberg
Jason West and Susan Anenberg’s work was recently profiled by NASA for their efforts to help air quality managers and policymakers solve clean air problems using NASA data and products.
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
Daniel Tong’s commentary on the health impacts of massive dust storms in Arizona featured in Sierra magazine.
NASA Satellites Help Scientists Determine the Global Burden of Asthma
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
Susan Anenberg’s work was recently profiled by NASA for its cutting-edge application of satellite data to asthma and global health.
On the road in Hawaii, Princeton team seeks clearer picture of volcanic air quality
Featuring HAQAST PI Mark Zondlo
Mark Zondlo’s work documenting the impacts of the Kilauea eruptions on air quality
HAQAST’s Work Included in the 2018 EPA Air Trends Report
Our team’s work, especially that of Bryan Duncan, is included the the 2018 EPA Air Trends Report. New this year are animations of SO2 from satellite data.
The Paris Agreement saves lives in China
Featuring HAQAST PI Jason West and Collaborator Jonathan Patz
Patz and West’s commentary, titled ‘The Paris Agreement Could Save Lives in China,’ was published in The Lancet
HOLLOWAY INTERVIEWED FOR ‘WOMEN BREAKING BARRIERS’ SERIES
Tracey Holloway was interviewed for OnlineEdcuation.com’s Women Breaking Barriers series. This series highlights many women that are trailblazers in their respective fields.
NASA Giovanni Video Tutorial Now Available
Watch HAQAST’s NASA Giovanni video tutorial, produced by the NASA HAQAST Communications Team
Smoke Tools and Information for use During Wildfires
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan O’Neill
Watch O’Neill’s video on tools and information for use during wildfires
NASA Worldview Video Tutorial Now Available
Watch HAQAST’s NASA Worldview video tutorial, produced by the NASA HAQAST Communications Team
UNC podcast: Climate change and air pollution
Featuring HAQAST PI Jason West
‘Each year, millions of people die from exposure to air pollution. And if unaddressed, climate change could bring those numbers up even higher by the end of the century.’
MILLER PUBLISHED A PIECE IN PHYSICS TODAY PROFILING HAQAST
Featuring HAQAST Member Daegan Miller
‘“Out of sight, out of mind” goes the common saying, yet what people can’t see can have an important impact on their well-being. Invisible gases including nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and ozone negatively affect human health, and satellites offer the best means of tracking those atmospheric pollutants.’
Featuring HAQAST PI Jason West
‘The USA will benefit from improved air quality in the future, through actions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions both domestically and globally.’
ZONDLO’S RESEARCH GROUP AT PRINCETON DEVELOPS A MOBILE SENSING PLATFORM FOR AIR POLLUTANTS
Featuring HAQAST PI Mark Zondlo
‘Mark Zondlo and his research group have developed a mobile platform to measure critical greenhouse gases and air pollutants. They recently acquired an all-electric vehicle to house the suite of sensors, which they can use to monitor urban air quality, without altering their own measurements.’
Meet the Lake Michigan Ozone Study Scientists
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘Dr. Betsy Stone compiled a presentation introducing the contributors to the summer 2017 LMOS data collection part of Pierce’s work on high-ozone events.’
Fiore and Jin’s Research Featured as NASA Image of the Day
Featuring HAQAST PI Arlene Fiore
‘Ozone pollution near Earth’s surface is one of the main ingredients of summertime smog and a primary cause of poor air quality. Yet it is not directly measurable from space because of the abundance of ozone higher in the atmosphere, which obscures measurements of surface ozone. Now NASA-funded researchers have devised a way to use satellites to measure the precursor gases that contribute to ozone formation.’
Why more dust storms and Valley fever are blanketing the Southwest
Featuring HAQAST PI Daniel Tong
‘Giant dust storms are sweeping the southwestern United States more frequently. Why? Rising sea temperatures, according to a study published in the journal of Geophysical Research Letters.’
NASA Aids Study of Lake Michigan High-Ozone Events
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘NASA researchers are conducting science flights along the Wisconsin-Illinois Lake Michigan shoreline to help better understand the formation and transport of ozone, a potent air pollutant in the region.’
Air pollution deaths expected to rise because of climate change
Featuring HAQAST PI Jason West
‘New research predicts that air pollution worsened by climate change will cost tens of thousands of lives if changes are not made.’
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘HAQAST Co-I Brad Pierce was invited to an on-air interview at the Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) studios in Madison, Wisconsin on August 10, 2017 to discuss the 2017 Lake Michigan Ozone Study (LMOS 2017) with the hosts of WPRs Central Times.’
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘This online article was published in July, 2016, nearly a year before the NEI NOX project commenced, in the Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) News Articles.’
LMOS Project Featured in SSEC Biannual Publication
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘This project was featured in the UW-Madison Space Science and Engineering (SSEC) “Through the Atmosphere” summer 2017 publication in print and online.’
Lake Michigan Ozone Study 2017 Story on WPR Blog
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘A Wisconsin Public Radio interview of some the 2017 Lake Michigan Ozone Study (LMOS 2017) science leads aired on June 22, 2017, which was also that last day of the LMOS 2017 field campaign.’
‘A 10-year (2006-2016) high-resolution (0.1×0.1 degree) monthly mean tropospheric NO2 column data set generated by the NASA OMI Science Team for NO2 was developed for display on NOAA Science On a Sphere (SOS) exhibits.’
Impacts and mitigation of excess diesel-related NOx emissions in 11 major vehicle markets
Featuring HAQAST PI Susan Anenberg
‘Diesels pollute more than lab tests detect. Excess emissions kill 38,000 annually.’
Scientific America Podcast: Pollution Peaks when Temperatures Top Out
Featuring HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway
‘As Temperatures Rise, Energy Demands Peak, with a Corresponding Increase in Air Pollutants’
Featuring HAQAST PI Brad Pierce
‘PI Brad Pierce gave a briefing on the 2017 Lake Michigan Ozone Study to the Business Advocacy Committee of the Sheboygan County Chamber of Commerce in Sheboygan, Wisconsin on April 7, 2017.’
NPR’s All Things Considered Podcast
Featuring HAQAST PI Arlene Fiore
‘The Culprit In Rising Western U.S. Smog Levels: Asia’
The Guardian covers research on air pollution and premature birth
‘Air pollution could be a contributing factor in millions of premature births around the world each year’
Update from our Program Manager
Featuring HAQAST Program Manager John Haynes
‘HAQAST has expanded its focus beyond just air quality policy and regulation information utilizing Earth observationing data to the environmental health realm’
Henze connects air quality research to local and global impacts
Featuring HAQAST Member Daven Henze
‘Targeting Cookstove Pollution Using Supercomputers and NASA Satellites’
HAQAST Leader, Holloway quoted in NBC News article
Featuring HAQAST Team Lead Tracey Holloway
’11 Surprising Predictions for 2017 from some of The Biggest Names in Science’
West quoted from UNC communications
Featuring HAQAST PI Jason West
“I am excited by this opportunity, not only to conduct studies that will have an influence on environmental and public health policies, but also to better understand how to improve engagement with decision makers in future projects.”
HAQAST is featured in Isthmus article
‘HAQAST is making NASA satellite data useful in monitoring air quality and pollution’