Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) Instrument

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Context

• NASA’s high-resolution air pollution monitoring instrument TEMPO lifted atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Details

• TEMPO is a payload on the satellite Intelsat 40E.
• The Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument is on its way to a geostationary orbit where it will monitor major air pollutants across North America.
• TEMPO will take important scientific observations, including that of ozone, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide and formaldehyde levels.

Significance

• TEMPO will be the first space-based instrument that is capable of measuring air quality over North America hourly during the daytime with a resolution of several square miles. The current limit is about 100 square miles, or about 258 square kilometres.
• Using TEMPO data, scientists will be able to study rush hour pollution, the potential for improved air quality alerts, the impact of lightning on the ozone layer, the movement of pollution from forest fires and volcanoes and even the effects of fertiliser application.
• The TEMPO mission is about more than just studying pollution – it’s about improving life on Earth for all.
• By monitoring the effects of everything from rush-hour traffic to pollution from forest fires and volcanoes, NASA data will help improve air quality across North America and protect our planet.

https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/science/spacex-launches-nasa-tiempo-air-quality-satellite-8544298/