Monitoring air quality from space: The case for the geostationary platform

This composition depends on local emissions of pollutants, chemistry, and transport processes; it is highly variable in space and time. Key lower-tropospheric pollutants include ozone, aerosols, and the ozone precursors NOx and volatile organic compounds.

Information on the transport of pollutants is provided by carbon monoxide measurements. Air quality impacts human society, because high concentrations of pollutants can have adverse effects on human health; health costs attributable to AQ are high. The ability to monitor, forecast, and manage AQ is thus crucial for human society.