Mapping the Real-Time Air Pollution Wafting Over Cities Around the World

On the heels of the COP21 summit, a new real-time mapping tool tracks hourly changes in air quality for around 200 metro areas around the world. The user-friendly World Air Map, designed by Plume Labs—a company that makes environmental software for health and well-being—offers a way to monitor the progress of long-term goals (such as the ones agreed upon in Paris) as well as short-term interventions (like the one being tested in New Delhi) on a daily basis.

Plume Labs helped bring attention to the air pollution problem in Paris last year, which led to the city instituting a partial ban on cars (similar to the one now being tested out in Delhi). And for this new map, the company has gleaned relevant data from half a million environmental measurements collected from 11,000 stations. The tool can estimate not only the extent of air pollutants in these cities, but also anticipate where the pollutants are wafting.