The satellite that took off this morning from Florida to USAequipped with her new tool NASAwhich will measure hourly air pollution in every area of ​​North America.

This scientific instrument, called TEMPO, will track emissions of pollutants with much greater accuracy than ever before, from the source of their release and throughout their travel by wind.

The collected data will be used primarily by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which are responsible for air quality forecasts in the US.

Measurements from this new instrument will improve warnings to residents in the event of poor air quality, better identify points on the ground where new detection devices should be installed, or even contribute to research on exposure to air pollutants. on health.

Takeoff! Our #PACE the mission and its primary satellite are on their way to space. The size of a dishwasher, TEMPO is powerful enough to monitor air pollutants across North America at up to 4 square miles (10 square kilometers) resolution. pic.twitter.com/kmGHrPfzTN

— NASA (@NASA) April 7, 2023

This new tool will also track air pollution caused by wildfires, which are becoming more frequent due to climate change.

About 40% of Americans (137 million people) live in areas with poor air quality, according to the American Lung Association. Very poor areas were disproportionately affected.

Air pollution causes about 60,000 premature deaths in the US each year. It also hurts the economy as it affects productivity or even crops.

“All the time”

The satellites currently used in the US to make these measurements are at an altitude of about 700 kilometers and orbit the Earth about fifteen times a day.

“So every day we can take measurements over New York, for example, at 13:30,” Caroline Nowlan, an atmospheric physicist at the Center for Astrophysics, explained at a press conference. However, “a lot happens in a day in New York. There are two rush hours during which we cannot take measurements,” he said.

TEMPO, which weighs just under 140 kilograms, will be attached to a satellite in geostationary orbit at an altitude of more than 35,000 kilometers. Therefore, it will orbit the Earth at the same time as itself, which will allow it to always be above North America.

“For the first time, we will be able to take measurements over North America around the clock,” Novlan added, expressing her satisfaction.

The geostationary orbit is very common in telecommunications satellites, and TEMPO has been placed on one of them: the Intelsat IS-40e satellite.

Ozone and nitrogen dioxide

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying a satellite carrying NASA’s new instrument, lifted off today at 00:30 local time (07:30 Greek time) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. According to Jean-Luc Freiser, vice president of Intelsat, it will take about two weeks to reach the desired orbit.

Then he can start his own business.

TEMPO will work by analyzing the light reflected from the surface of clouds using a spectrometer. Each gas absorbs light differently, so “we can see what’s in the atmosphere by the colors or wavelengths of the light it absorbs,” Novlan explained.

TEMPO will take three main measurements.

First, it will measure the nitrogen dioxide produced during combustion, mainly in cars running on gasoline or diesel fuel, but also in power plants running on coal or natural gas.

Secondly, ozone, which, when high in the atmosphere, protects us from solar radiation, but becomes harmful to health when it is on the ground.

Finally, formaldehyde, which can be used to determine the presence of volatile organic compounds. It’s “what makes some things smell like paint, gasoline,” Novlan explains.

TEMPO, which will operate for at least two years, although it will undoubtedly operate much longer, will join approximately 25 NASA Earth observation missions.

A TEMPO-like instrument called GEMS is already in geostationary orbit for the same mission over Asia after it launches in 2020.

Another one, Sentinel-4, is expected to depart in 2024 to cover Europe.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}

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