View allAll Photos Tagged airquality
When some have expressed frustration or exasperation about California's strict air quality standards, and note the difference in the state's requirements for automobile emissions standards, the most telling remarks are ones which demonstrate lack of understanding about why the state has them. Aside from the abundance of automobiles and people, the most significant reason why the state has air quality problems is because the air is stagnant.
Why is the air stagnant?
The air in California is stagnant because the state is surrounded by mountains, and the Sierras to the East, along with the Cascades to the North, and those in the South block the free flow/circulation/movement of air. And, those mountains are NOT small. The elevations of some of the mountains reach 2 miles high, and most average at least 1 mile in elevation. And that's just the ones in the South!
This is the BEST example to illustrate the problem.
Seen here, tule fog comes into the state off the Pacific Ocean, and enters into the San Francisco Bay area, and from there, spreads down though the Central Valley (aka SJV San Joaquin Valley) near the Los Angeles Basin area, and up in to Sacramento, the State Capitol.
The state is literally surrounded by mountains. They're on the Pacific coastline, they're in the North bordering Oregon, they're along the Eastern border with Nevada, they're along the South... they're everywhere. LITERALLY. So, the geographic shape that forms is very much like a bowl.
The air is so still in California...
(HOW STILL IS IT?!)
It's so still that you can burn open candles outdoors without concern for a breeze blowing out the flame.
Now, friends... THAT is still!
Of course, I've jokingly mentioned to a long-time friend who resides there, that I have a proposed, sure-fire solution to the problem:
Use a high-powered nuclear device (bomb) to blow a hole in the Sierras to allow to the air to pass through.
Problem solved.
This is the sun, taken from my driveway at 8 this morning. It looked more red, actually, in real life. We've been covered in smoke for a few days now, and that red sun up in the sky makes it all feel so other-worldly. Like we've woken up on another planet -- one where the sun is red and the air is not fit to breathe.
Here in our province (B.C.), wildfires are responsible for a huge plume of smoke and ash over metro Vancouver. An air quality advisory has been issued. You can smell, taste and feel it sting your eyes and throat.
The next province over (Alberta) has hundreds of people on evacuation alert. The next province to that (Saskatchewan) has 300,000 hectares burning, and more than a thousand military personnel have been deployed to help contain the fires.
Western Canada is one smoky hot mess. :(
The Electric Fetus record store in Minneapolis during wildfire smoke covering the city. The air quality in Minnesota was the worst ever recorded from the Canadian wild fire smoke.
Fri. the 11th and today twice as worst as yesterdays image posted. They say thru the weekend with air quality at very unhealthy levels. Stay Indoors is a must.
When I was a young boy growing up in Wyoming, I remember hiking in the hills around Thermopolis and finding lichen just like what you see on this rock in Zion National Park. Much later in life, I learned that lichen are indicators of clean, pure, fresh air. Lichens are sensitive to oxides of nitrogen and sulfur and cannot thrive where these harmful substances are present in large amounts. Lichens are a combination of algal cells and fungal filaments living together in a symbiotic relationship. When hiking the trails in Zion notice the abundant evidence of the symbiotic plant. Finding lichens in a city would be unlikely.
This rock is located in the Great White Throne turnout at Zion National Park.
References:
High brow:
For the rest of us:
a. www.zionnational-park.com/zions-national-park.htm
b. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichen
Process:
Nikon Coolpix P4, 7.5mm, 1/83sec, f/6.1, single exposure, no HDR, adjustments in Adobe Photoshop Elements 8. Once again, this is a case where the individual image looked better than the three exposure (hand held) HDR version. The exposure was metered on the rock so the sky is pretty blown out. The colors are accurate, however, and quite stunning.
DSCN5574-4
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Pollution builds up along the U.S. East Coast as it passes from one city to the next, particularly in the Northeast Corridor. These cities include Richmond, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City, Boston and all the smaller cities in between. Some of the largest absolute changes in nitrogen dioxide have occurred in this corridor.
This visualization shows tropospheric column concentrations of nitrogen dioxide as detected by the Ozone Monitoring Instrument on NASA's Aura satellite, averaged yearly from 2005-2011. Blue and green denote lower concentrations and orange and red areas denote higher concentrations, ranging from 1x1015 to 5x1015 molecules per square centimeter, respectively.
Credit: Images were composed by NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio based on data and input provided by atmospheric scientists Yasuko Yoshida, Lok Lamsal, and Bryan Duncan, all of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
To see the feature story on NASA.gov go to: 1.usa.gov/1lPXAzw
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.
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Anchor Road Bristol at 1620 and this image would not be possible in normal times as there would be several buses here picking the start of the end of day school and the start of the rush hour. Life has become more slower and the air quality has improved although you can smell indivual cars as they pass.
Fire season has kept doggies indoors. Air quality around Medford Oregon is very toxic now. An hour out side was said to be equivalent to smoking a pack of cigarettes.
shot it up from Jamshideh park on a windy day!
north east of Tehran, Iran (3 shots)
Check it out large!
نمای پانورامیک تهران
پارک جمشیدیه - شمال شرقی تهران
تاثیر باد بر کیفیت هوای تهران جالبه نه؟
سایز بزرگ را ببینید - 3 شات
We woke up to our worst air quality index yet - 295, just six points shy of hazardous. Visibility should have been ten miles but was no more than a mile for most of the day.
Pollution is tricky to see from the ground. You think it's a reasonably decent day. After a while you don't notice the muted blues of the sky. It's only when you can see farther into the distance that you notice just how bad the day is. That's when you notice the grey haze, the tiny white flakes, the low contrast.
I took this image with a 400mm lens from the 20th floor of a residential building.
Louisville, KY, contractor, of course.
Soil erosion and sediment control is not a strong point here.
Best viewed with this song: www.youtube.com/watch?v=953PkxFNiko
A primary mission of this aircraft--a hurricane hunter--is taking measurements in hurricanes to improve predictions and scientific understanding. But these photos were taken during the Southeast Nexus (SENEX) research study of air quality and climate in the Southeastern United States. The aircraft was the centerpiece of the study--filled with scientific instrumentation to analyze gases and small particles. The field study was organized and supported by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in conjunction with a number of partners. Other photos in this series show details of the aircraft.
These photos were taken in Smyrna, Tennessee.
Hazy smoke in the air from nearby summer wildfires in the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Poor visibility for mountains
Louis Neefs:- Laat ons een bloem
Dit is een lied voor de mensen die zorgen,
dat morgen de mensen al dood zullen zijn,
dit is een lied voor de doden van morgen,
begraven gekist in een stenen woestijn
Laat ons een bloem en wat gras dat nog groen is, laat ons een boom en het zicht op de zee
vergeet voor één keer hoeveel geld een miljoen is, de wereld die moet nog een eeuwigheid mee
Je preekt en je hakt en je boort door de bergen, je maakt elke heuvel gelijk met de grond, de reuzen van nu lijken morgen maar dwergen, vooruitgang vernieuwd wat er gisteren nog stond
Laat ons een bloem en wat gras dat nog groen is, laat ons een boom en het zicht op de zee
vergeet voor één keer hoeveel geld een miljoen is, de wereld die moet nog een eeuwigheid mee
De vis in de zeeën vergiftigd gestorven,
het zand op de stranden vervuild door mazout,
en jij door je tankers en chequeboek bedorven, je weet zelfs niet meer waar de meeuw heeft gebroed
Laat ons een bloem en wat gras dat nog groen is, laat ons een boom en het zicht op de zee
vergeet voor één keer hoeveel geld een miljoen is, de wereld die moet nog een eeuwigheid mee
En zo zal dan morgen het leven verdwijnen,
verslagen door staal en gewapend beton,
de maan zal dan koud op je nachtmerries schijnen, geen mens die nog weet hoe het einde begon
Laat ons een bloem en wat gras dat nog groen is, laat ons een boom en het zicht op de zee
vergeet voor één keer hoeveel geld een miljoen is, de wereld die moet nog een eeuwigheid mee
de wereld die moet nog een eeuwigheid mee
een eeuwigheid mee
een eeuwigheid mee
een eeuwigheid mee
een eeuwigheid mee
The LA basin consistently ranks as the most polluted in the U.S, topping the American Lung Association lists for both ozone and particulate pollution. In 2007 Los Angeles ranked 4th and 3rd for long-term particle, and ozone pollution respectively.
Ulaanbaatar is the coldest capital city in the world. During winter temperatures can drop below -30 degrees Celcius. It is also the season when the air quality in the city drops to hazardous levels because of over-dependence in burning cheap raw-coal for heating and cooking. A marked improvement in air quality in the city is expected after a ban on the use of raw-coal was implemented by the government in Ulaanbaatar in May 2019.
Ulaanbaatar is the coldest capital city in the world. During winter temperatures can drop below -30 degrees Celcius. It is also the season when the air quality in the city drops to hazardous levels because of over-dependence in burning cheap raw-coal for heating and cooking. A marked improvement in air quality in the city is expected after a ban on the use of raw-coal was implemented by the government in Ulaanbaatar in May 2019.
Smoke from fires over Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington. (Photo courtesy of Bob Wick/BLM)
In game screenshot (3440x1440)
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The Sea-Link Rigger hauling scrap heap -- a load of crushed metal on its way to a Port of Tacoma scrap metal yard.
Shot from Marine View Drive near Browns Point and Commencement Bay.
Rocky Mountain National Park, along Trail Ridge Road in autumn. Hazy, polluted sky due to nearby wildfires