How Portable Air Sensors Are Changing Pollution Detection

Air pollution is a global problem, especially in rapidly modernizing nations. But before countries can tackle it they have to be able to measure it, and that seemingly simple task has turned out to be surprisingly difficult. Satellite and fixed, ground-based sensors have limitations that prevent them from providing accurate, up-to-the-minute readings of pollution in the neighborhoods and slums that get it worst.

But a new generation of small, portable, cheap air sensors could revolutionize pollution measurements for citizen scientists and governments alike. Compact sensors like the AirBeam or San Francisco-based Aclima’s triangular sensor nodes have been deployed to measure the air of U.S. metros in real-time. By connecting the sensors to the Internet, tools such as these have made it possible to compile massive datasets of air quality in cities.