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Just how bad are wildfires on our health? A high-tech lab will fly into smoke to find out
Just how bad are wildfires on our health? A high-tech lab will fly into smoke to find out
BY RACHEL HAGER
AUGUST 02, 2019 12:08 PM, UPDATED 1 HOUR 21 MINUTES AGO
Extreme Western wildfires lead to poor air quality both close to the fires and far away, an increasing human health concern. Now, a high-tech flying science lab will fly directly over wildfires to find out what dangers lurk in the smoke.
A new joint collaboration led by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration uses redesigned planes to fly through smoke plumes to measure the impact of smoke on air quality.
“One in three households has someone with a respiratory issue,” said Pete Lahm U.S. Forest Service’s national smoke manager, in an interview at Boise’s Gowen Field, where several of the project’s planes are now on duty. “Smoke-related respiratory issues result in $11 billion to $20 billion in annual medical costs nationwide.”
....
The first phase of the campaign is based at Gowen Field until mid-August. Researchers will fly up to 25 missions through wildfire smoke plumes in the Western U.S.
Later in the summer, researchers will move to Salina, Kansas, to study the impact of agricultural fires on air quality. According to NASA, agricultural fires are less intense than Western wildfires but occur more frequently throughout the year, causing increased levels of pollutants in the air.
....
Rachel Hager is writing for the Idaho Statesman this summer on a fellowship through the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is a master’s student in ecology at Utah State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in biology at Bryn Mawr College. She has been offered a one-year fellowship with NOAA starting in February.
BY RACHEL HAGER
AUGUST 02, 2019 12:08 PM, UPDATED 1 HOUR 21 MINUTES AGO
Extreme Western wildfires lead to poor air quality both close to the fires and far away, an increasing human health concern. Now, a high-tech flying science lab will fly directly over wildfires to find out what dangers lurk in the smoke.
A new joint collaboration led by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration uses redesigned planes to fly through smoke plumes to measure the impact of smoke on air quality.
“One in three households has someone with a respiratory issue,” said Pete Lahm U.S. Forest Service’s national smoke manager, in an interview at Boise’s Gowen Field, where several of the project’s planes are now on duty. “Smoke-related respiratory issues result in $11 billion to $20 billion in annual medical costs nationwide.”
....
The first phase of the campaign is based at Gowen Field until mid-August. Researchers will fly up to 25 missions through wildfire smoke plumes in the Western U.S.
Later in the summer, researchers will move to Salina, Kansas, to study the impact of agricultural fires on air quality. According to NASA, agricultural fires are less intense than Western wildfires but occur more frequently throughout the year, causing increased levels of pollutants in the air.
....
Rachel Hager is writing for the Idaho Statesman this summer on a fellowship through the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is a master’s student in ecology at Utah State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in biology at Bryn Mawr College. She has been offered a one-year fellowship with NOAA starting in February.
