Air Pollution News

January 29, 2025

Top Headlines

Study Reveals How Microbes Help Detoxify Our Atmosphere

Jan. 29, 2025 — Researchers have discovered crucial new information about how microbes consume huge amounts of carbon monoxide (CO) and help reduce levels of this deadly ...

Air Pollution Inequities Linked to Industrial Swine Facilities Are Detectable from Space

Jan. 28, 2025 — A UVA study uses satellite data to show that air pollution from industrial swine farms in Eastern North Carolina disproportionately affects marginalized ...

Technology for Oxidizing Atmospheric Methane Won't Help the Climate

Jan. 17, 2025 — Atmospheric scientists show proposed 'geoengineering' effort to remove methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere could worse air quality while providing minimal climate ...

Lower Access to Air Conditioning May Increase Need for Emergency Care for Wildfire Smoke Exposure

Jan. 11, 2025 — People who have limited access to air conditioning may be at higher risk of seeking emergency care for health problems following exposure to wildfire smoke, according to a new study. The study found ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:20pm EST

Taking a Cue from Lightning, Eco-Friendly Reactor Converts Air and Water Into Ammonia

Dec. 19, 2024 — Taking inspiration from how nature --including lightning -- produces ammonia, a team has developed a reactor that produces the chemical commodity ...

For Optimal Marathon Performance, Check Training Plan, Gear, Nutrition, Weather -- And Air Quality?

Dec. 18, 2024 — When preparing for a marathon, runners don't usually think much about air quality. But maybe they should, according to findings from a new study. ...

Months After Colorado's Marshall Fire, Residents of Surviving Homes Reported Health Symptoms, Poor Air Quality

Dec. 23, 2024 — Three years after the Dec. 30, 2021, Marshall Fire destroyed more than 1,000 homes in Boulder County, two new studies offer insight into what happens ...

Researchers Find Compromised Indoor Air in Homes Following Marshall Fire

Dec. 23, 2024 — A new study finds gases harmful to human health lingered for weeks following the ...

Microplastics in the Air May Be Leading to Lung and Colon Cancers

Dec. 18, 2024 — Tires and degrading garbage shed tiny pieces of plastic into the air, creating a form of air pollution that researchers suspect may be causing respiratory and other ...

Electric Vehicle Transition Could Create Unwanted Air Pollution Hotspots in China and India

Dec. 16, 2024 — New research has uncovered a potential unintended consequence of the electric vehicle transition in India and China, finding that sulfur dioxide ...

A New, More Economical and Sustainable Material Is Designed That Uses Sunlight to Decontaminate the Air

Dec. 11, 2024 — Researchers have designed a new compound to remove nitrogen oxides, which constitutes a step towards the development of a system to purify the air ...

Long-Term Exposure to Air Pollution Linked to Blood Clots in Veins That Bring Blood to the Heart

Dec. 12, 2024 — A large study found that greater exposure to long-term air pollution was linked with increased risks for blood clots that can occur in deep veins, ...

New Device Produces Critical Fertilizer Ingredient from Thin Air, Cutting Carbon Emissions

Dec. 13, 2024 — A new prototype device demonstrates an innovative approach to producing ammonia -- a key component of fertilizer -- that could transform an industry ...

Regional, Racial, and Economic Disparities in Cancer Risk from Air Pollution Exposure Persist, but Improving, New Research Suggests

Dec. 3, 2024 — A nationwide U.S. assessment of estimated cancer risk from airborne toxics shows that risk is concentrated in urban communities, those with lower ...

Exposure to Remote Wildfire Smoke Drifting Across the US Linked to Increased Medical Visits for Heart and Lung Problems

Dec. 13, 2024 — Wildfire smoke has long been known to exacerbate health problems like heart disease, lung conditions, and asthma, but now a new study finds that smoke from these fires can lead to poor health ...

New Chemical Structures Show Vastly Improved Carbon Capture Ability

Dec. 12, 2024 — Researchers have synthesized new molecules able to quickly capture significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the air, an important tactic in climate change ...

As Wildfires Intensify, Prolonged Exposure to Pollution Linked to Premature Death

Dec. 12, 2024 — Researchers have found evidence that living in areas prone to wildfire smoke may negatively impact an individual's life ...

Air Pollution in India Linked to Millions of Deaths

Dec. 11, 2024 — A new study shows that long-term exposure to air pollution contributes to millions of deaths in India. The research emphasizes the need for stricter air quality regulations in the ...

These Are Now the Smokiest Cities in America

Dec. 10, 2024 — Normally, America's smokiest cities lie out west. But Canada's unusually intense 2023 wildfire season smothered American cities in smoke farther east than is usual, according to new ...

Aerosol Pollutants from Cooking May Last Longer in the Atmosphere

Dec. 10, 2024 — New insights into the behavior of aerosols from cooking emissions and sea spray reveal that particles may take up more water than previously thought, potentially changing how long the particles ...

Building Green and Blue Spaces, Such as Parks, in New Communities Is Crucial for Cleaner Air

Dec. 3, 2024 — With house building a priority for the new UK Government, researchers are urging city planners not to forget to build 'greening areas' such as parks in new ...

Overlooked Emissions in California's Salton Sea Air Basin

Dec. 3, 2024 — Nitrogen oxide emissions from soil in California's Salton Sea air basin are 10 times larger than state estimates, finds a new study of rural Imperial and Coachella ...

Fine Particulate Air Pollution May Play a Role in Adverse Birth Outcomes

Nov. 29, 2024 — For pregnant women, exposure to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) was associated with altered immune responses that can lead to adverse birth outcomes, according to a new study. The study is ...

Air Fryers Confirmed as Least Polluting Cooking Method

Nov. 26, 2024 — Air fryers produce a tiny fraction of the indoor air pollution emitted by other cooking methods including pan and deep frying, a new study has ...

Research Links Wildfire Smoke Exposure With Increased Dementia Risk

Nov. 25, 2024 — Research found that wildfire smoke is especially hazardous to people's memory health. An analysis of the health care records of 1.2 million Southern California residents found that higher ...

The Factors Behind the Shifting Trends of Ischemic Heart Disease and Stroke

Nov. 20, 2024 — Incidence of stroke and ischemic heart disease are declining around the world, except for in a handful of regions, according to a new study. Researchers find that in East and West Sub-Saharan Africa, ...

Climate Change and Air Pollution Could Risk 30 Million Lives Annually by 2100

Nov. 20, 2024 — Mortality attributable to air pollution and extreme temperatures is a major concern, and it is expected to heighten in the future. An international research team found that, under the most probable ...

Climate Change and Eye Maladies

Nov. 16, 2024 — Clinical visits by patients suffering ocular surface eye conditions more than doubled during times when ambient particulate matter from air pollution was in the atmosphere, signaling a possible ...

Rainforest Protection Reduces the Number of Respiratory Diseases

Nov. 15, 2024 — Rainforest protection is not only good for biodiversity and the climate -- it also noticeably improves the health of humans who live in the corresponding regions. Researchers show that measures to ...

Air Pollution Exposure May Be Associated With Eczema

Nov. 13, 2024 — People living in areas with higher levels of air pollution are more likely to have eczema, according to a new ...

New Study Links Air Pollution With Higher Rates of Head and Neck Cancer

Nov. 12, 2024 — A recent study correlates higher levels of pollutant particulate matter to higher occurrences of head and neck aerodigestive ...

Nanoparticle Bursts Over the Amazon Rainforest

Nov. 8, 2024 — Atmospheric aerosol particles are essential for the formation of clouds and precipitation, thereby influencing the Earth's energy budget, water cycle, and climate. However, the origin of aerosol ...

Chalk-Coated Textiles Cool in Urban Environments

Nov. 8, 2024 — As air temperatures stay elevated through fall months, people may still want clothes that cool them down while outside, especially if they live in cities that stay warmer than rural landscapes. ...

Researchers Develop Artificial Plants That Purify Indoor Air, Generate Electricity

Nov. 5, 2024 — Scientists are repurposing their research about bacteria-powered biobatteries into a new idea for artificial plants that can feed off carbon dioxide, give off oxygen and even generate a little ...