Browse > Home / Aeronautics News / ‘Smog Blog’ for Central America and Caribbean Debuts

‘Smog Blog’ for Central America and Caribbean Debuts

Written by thomas · Filed Under Aeronautics News 

October 1, 2008

thomas

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — NASA and its partners
today unveiled a new way to connect satellite air quality data with
communities in Central America and the Caribbean. The MesoAmerican and
Caribbean Smog Blog, a Web site interpreting local and regional air
quality, was introduced at a news conference in Panama City in conjunction
with a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) in the Americas
symposium.

The Smog Blog provides timely information about air pollution and its
sources in the region, helping the public, governments, and health
officials monitor air quality and mitigate negative health impacts. The
blog is written by faculty and students at the University of Panama and
staff from the Water Center for the Humid Tropics of Latin America and the
Caribbean (CATHALAC). It is the newest addition to SERVIR (Spanish for “to
serve”), a regional environmental monitoring system that leverages the
satellite resources of the United States and other countries to put Earth
observation data and other tools into action in Central America.

“CATHALAC has truly taken a leadership role in understanding how NASA
atmospheric research information can benefit the citizens of Mesoamerica,”
said Teresa Fryberger, associate director of Applied Sciences in NASA’s
Earth Science Division in Washington and co-chair of the U.S. Group on
Earth Observations. “With Smog Blog, Central American environmental and
health officials will be able to better communicate warnings about
hazardous air conditions so the public can take appropriate precautions.”

Posts are made at least three times a week by trained personnel using
information from satellites, air quality forecast models and
soon-to-be-operational ground-based monitors. Satellites from NASA and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provide air quality
information of use to the region. Data from NASA’s Terra and Aqua
satellites provide a variety of atmospheric measurements. The NASA-French
Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO)
satellite mission provides bloggers with data about regional airborne
particles. NOAA’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites
provides continuous monitoring of Earth necessary for timely, intensive
data analysis. Another NOAA data asset providing material is a Hazard
Mapping System that detects wildfires from space and tracks the smoke they
produce.

“The Smog Blog and other activities reflect the work of many partners
in supporting the realization of GEOSS in the Western Hemisphere,” said
Emilio Sempris, director of CATHALAC. “In our region, this exciting
initiative is going to improve the quality of life in vital sectors,
including public health, energy, weather, climate, and agriculture.”

A U.S. Smog Blog has been operated for five years by a team at the
University of Maryland Baltimore County. The site draws 35,000 visits a
month, mainly state and local air quality forecasters. It is a daily
resource for “big picture” analysis of nationwide air quality and insights
into how national trends may affect communities locally. Through a NASA
cooperative agreement, the U.S. Smog Blog team is working with the SERVIR
collaboration to bring this communications tool to Central America.

“The Smog Blog has been a powerful communications tool here in the
United States,” said Erica Zell, co-developer of the Smog Blog and research
scientist for Battelle Memorial Institute. “We hope through sharing
real-time air quality information in this region we will make an impact in
preventing future harm. Pollution and acid rain have damaged ancient Mayan
ruins and air quality has immense public health impacts in this region.”

Support for the new Smog Blog is provided by CATHALAC, the University
of Panama, the University of Maryland Baltimore County, Panama’s national
environmental authority, the World Bank and Battelle Memorial Institute.
NASA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Agency for
International Development fund this initiative.

The Group on Earth Observations is coordinating intergovernmental
efforts to build GEOSS, a network designed to better understand, monitor
and forecast changes in the global environment. Driven by the 75-government
Group on Earth Observations, GEOSS in the Americas is working as a catalyst
for regional initiatives by advancing the use of Earth observations,
encouraging shared use of data, and leveraging regional assets.

The SERVIR system, developed by researchers at NASA’s Marshall Space
Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., was introduced in 2005 in Panama at
CATHALAC. SERVIR takes a global approach to environmental challenges by
pooling Earth observation tools and data.

To read the MesoAmerican and Caribbean Smog Blog, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/servir

SOURCE NASA

» Próximo Post - Pratt & Whitney Canada Brings Service Excellence to the Next Level
« Post Aneterior - Kanematsu Corporation Orders 16 AgustaWestland Helicopters

Comments

¿Tiene algo que decir?

You must be logged in to post a comment.