Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — University of Utah scientists are getting a clearer picture of the murky winter pollution in the valley thanks in part to KSL Chopper 5.
Researchers took a ride in the sky to get the best data on the pollution at different elevations in the Salt Lake Valley.
Until now, all of the pollution measurements taken by the Division of Air Quality have come from fixed locations on the ground.
Up in the air, the pollution moves around. The density of pollutants varies at different elevations around different places in the valley.
Logan Mitchell is an atmospheric scientist gathering the unprecedented pollution data.
"We were punching in and out of the gunky layer as we were flying around,” he said.
With his pollution monitor, he measured different levels of particulate matter, methane and carbon dioxide.
"As you are up higher,” he said, “you can see much cleaner air and lower concentrations of particulates."
The most intense pollution is found downtown.
“What's really neat about what we found is that we were able to see very distinct layers within the atmosphere of different concentrations of the gases," Mitchell said.
That information is something the researchers want to better understand and the new data should help them discover how the air is mixing with much finer detail.
It should also help forecasters like Eric Crosman understand when and where the pollution will build and dissipate in the future.
Here's how it works:
- Enter the number of miles you pledge to save today.
- Come back every day between December 15, 2014 and January 31, 2015 and re-pledge. One pledge per day please.
- The miles you pledge may include carpooling, public transportation, telecommuting, walking, biking, etc.
- We will draw a random name each inversion day and a lucky winner will win $100 cash.
- Any Utah resident who drives is eligible to participate! Moms, Dads, students - not just commuters.
"We can understand the more detailed meteorology if we have more detailed pollution measurements," he said.
Consequently, health researchers will better understand who is being exposed to high levels of pollution. The scientists also have monitors on a Trax train that give them data on the ground from Daybreak to the University of Utah.
"The train is going back and forth across the city every hour, every day,” Mitchell said.
The constant readings give consistent coverage over a long period of time.
“To be able to pair that with the data we can get from Chopper 5 that looks up into the air, it’s going to be really unique,” he said.
When the research is shared with other experts working on the problem from different angles, the entire community will benefit.
“There's a whole team of scientists working hard on this problem, and it's just an exciting time to be part of that team," Crosman said.
The data is in the very early stages, but they have a lot of new information to work with thanks to the collaboration with KSL.
To access the minute-by-minute Trax data, visit the Trax Map Interface.
