Global project ‘paints’ evidence of air pollution in India

• Researchers and artists joined forces for painting with light international project to make invisible air pollution in India visible.

Highlights:

• Combining digital light painting and low-cost air pollution sensors, the scientific team produced photographic evidence of pollution levels in cities across three countries India, Ethiopia and the UK.
• Particulate Matter, or PM, is the air pollutant most responsible for human morbidity and mortality. It has multiple impacts on physical health and is responsible for diseases, including heart disease, stroke, and cancers.
• The painting with light team used low-cost air pollution sensors to measure PM mass concentrations. It took the sensor's real-time signal to control a moving LED array programmed to flash more rapidly as PM concentration increased.
• By providing a visual understanding of air pollution that is accessible to people who don’t necessarily have a scientific background
• The light painting approach can demonstrate that managing air pollution levels can have a significant impact on people’s day-to-day lives

Air Pollution

• Air pollution is considered one of the main threats to both the environment and human health and a leading cause of death globally.
• The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates 99% of the global population breathe polluted air, causing approximately 7 million premature deaths worldwide each year.
• The situation is particularly challenging in Asia, where air pollution remains a major problem in countries like India and China, despite several air quality policies and actions.

Prelims Takeaway

• Particulate Matter
• Light painting approach