NASA is all set to lend its helping hand to counter the air pollution menace in the upcoming winter season in the Delhi-NCR region. According to officials, the 'speciated air pollution data' from NASA's Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) satellite will be used by Delhi researchers to analyse how the health impact of dust pollution differs from that of crop burning. The project is likely to be implemented by 2021, reported the The Hindustan Times.
The payloads aboard the MAIA satellite will analyse electromagnetic radiations and waves to study the sizes, compositions and quantities of air particles.
Delhi and its neighbouring areas are one of the 12 geographical locations for which the satellite will provide the data.
Delhi is widely regarded as one of the most polluted cities in the world. Many factors such as road dust, vehicular emission and crop burning contribues to air pollution in the national capital during the winter months.
This is the first time that any satellite is attempting to provide data on many factors leading to air pollution.
The data will be implemented by policymakers to identify and target different sources of air pollution on a real-time basis over the entire geographical location without adding more ground-based sensors.
