With most lockdowns ending and economic activity resuming, levels of the air pollutant have returned to near normal for this time of year.
In early February 2020, scientists using NASA and European satellites detected a significant reduction in a key air pollutant over China after the country shut down transportation and much of its economy. Three months later, with most coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdowns ending in China and economic activity resuming, the levels of nitrogen dioxide over the country have returned to near normal for this time of year. Scientists expected this rebound.
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a noxious gas emitted primarily through the burning of gasoline, coal, and diesel fuel by motor vehicles, power plants, and industrial facilities. Near the ground, NO2 can turn into ozone that makes air hazy and unhealthy to breathe. Higher in the atmosphere, it can form acid rain. Scientists in the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center have been monitoring nitrogen dioxide and other aspects of global air quality for several decades.
Continue reading at NASA Earth Observatory
Image via NASA Earth Observatory
