In the US, hurricane damage comes at an annual cost of $24 billion, over half the cost of all natural disasters. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has an impressive record predicting where hurricanes might make landfall. But less successful are predictions of so-called "rapid-intensification" of the strength of landfalling hurricanes.
The Western Pacific is an accessible location that provides rich opportunities for investigating the impact of the Asian summer monsoon on global upper troposphere / lower stratosphere composition, e.g., through aircraft-based research campaigns.
Unusually prolonged cold stratospheric conditions in 2019/2020 have led to record-high chemical ozone loss and thus record-low ozone levels; only 2010/2011 came close. This behavior resembles that seen in the Antarctic, where an ozone "hole" recurs each winter.
An extraordinary complex of Australian fire-driven pyrocumulonimbus (pyroCb) storms at the end of 2019 produced an unprecedented stratospheric plume of fire emissions that circled the globe, rising from 15 to 31 km and persisting for more than two months.
Nitrogen Dioxide is an air pollutant and is primarily emitted from burning of fossil fuels (diesel, gasoline, coal) while driving cars and generating electricity.
Unprecedented amounts of pollution were produced by multiple fires over the USA west coast in September 2020. Continental scale smoke plumes from these wildfires were observed by the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on the Aura satellite for about five weeks since the onset of the fires in early September.
Aura's Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) used in evaluating the reduction of nitrogen dioxide tropospheric vertical column densities before and after the Lunar New Year.
As a consequence of the nationwide stay-at-home order, less fossil fuels are being consumed and, subsequently, less air pollution is being emitted in India and also in neighboring countries, including Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
The NASA standard nitrogen dioxide version 4.0 product for Aura's Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) incorporates the most salient improvements and enhances the data quality.
What do long-term observations of ozone profiles from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) aboard the Aura satellite tell us about the drivers of O3 variations near 90 km altitude (the secondary ozone maximum region), notably in relation to the 11-year solar cycle?
Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) measurements have previously shown that the easterly phase of the QBO is associated with increases in nitrogen in the Antarctic stratosphere.
Aura's MLS observes patterns of stratospheric humidity in the “Tropical Tropopause Layer” .
Aura's MLS observations of Arctic vortex-average chlorine monoxide improve the understanding of stratospheric ozone trends and their uncertainties
To facilitate scientific research using Aura's OMI nitrogen dioxide data, the team at developed a web-based monitoring system that shows time series for over 200 world cities and animated maps for larger regions.
The Northeast US has seen significant reductions in air pollution over its major metropolitan areas as communities grapple with widespread lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders as a result of the spread of COVID-19.
Aura's OMI data over South Asia show the means of the period in previous years, while the comparing to the means for 2020, showing a vast improvement after the nationwide stay-at-home order for India’s 1.3 billion citizens.
Satellite-derived emission estimates are based on NO2 measurements from the Aura Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI).
This study confirms the important role of monsoon regions in moistening the lower stratosphere in boreal summer using data collected from Aura's Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) .
Observations from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), onboard the NASA’s Earth Observing System (EOS) Aura satellite, reveal a large Sulfur dioxide pollution
Depletion of gas-phase nitric acid observed by Aura's Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS)
Pandemic Before and After: Los Angeles 2015-2019 versus 2020
05.15.2020 - On March 19, California was one of the first states to set mandatory stay-at-home restrictions in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19. Arizona and Nevada followed suit around April 1. The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on board NASA’s Aura satellite provide data that indicate that these restrictions have led to about a 31% decrease in Nitrogen Dioxide levels in the Los Angeles basin relative to previous years.
Pandemic Before and After: South Asia: 2017-2019 versus 2020
05.07.2020 - On March 24, 2020, Prime Minister Modi ordered a nationwide stay-at-home order for India’s 1.3 billion citizens in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19. As a consequence, less fossil fuels are being consumed and, subsequently, less air pollution is being emitted in India and also in neighboring countries, including Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
Reductions in Nitrogen Dioxide Associated with Decreased Fossil Fuel Use Resulting from COVID-19 Mitigation
04.28.2020 - Over the past several weeks, the Northeast United States has seen significant reductions in air pollution over its major metropolitan areas. Similar reductions in air pollution have been observed in other regions of the world.
NASA Satellite Data Show 30 Percent Drop In Air Pollution Over Northeast U.S.
04.09.2020 - Over the past several weeks, NASA satellite measurements have revealed significant reductions in air pollution over the major metropolitan areas of the Northeast United States. Similar reductions have been observed in other regions of the world. These recent improvements in air quality have come at a high cost, as communities grapple with widespread lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders as a result of the spread of COVID-19.
Airborne Nitrogen Dioxide Plummets Over China
03.02.2020 - NO2 amounts have dropped with the coronavirus quarantine, Chinese New Year, and a related economic slowdown.