Lunchtime Lecture: Using Satellite Observation to Launch Urban Air Quality Monitoring into the 21st Century

Air pollution is one of the greatest global threats to health. The current approach to develop air quality policy that mitigates hazardous effects of exposure to air pollution on health relies on a costly monitoring network with large data gaps. Satellite observations of air pollutants are the only solution to address this global challenge. I will talk about work underway in my group to develop a Tool for Recording and Assessing the City Environment (TRACE) to convert large and cumbersome Earth observations into meaningful information about air pollution in cities for end users to assess the efficacy of air quality policies and tools. TRACE was selected as a finalist for the Copernicus Masters Challenge and is being developed with support from the Satellite Applications and Connected Places Catapults, the Copernicus Accelerator Programme, the National Centre for Earth Observations, DEFRA, local city councils, and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

Speaker: Dr Eloise Marais, Professor in the Earth Observation Science group at University of Leicester
Eloise is an Associate Professor in the Earth Observation Science group at University of Leicester. My research group makes substantive use of Earth observations to determine the impact of humans on the Earth system. Eloise obtained her PhD from Harvard University in 2014 while on a Fulbright scholarship. She serves on the steering committee and contributes to the development of the international GEOS-Chem atmospheric chemistry model used by more than 100 institutions worldwide. More information on current and past research in her group can be found here: http://maraisresearchgroup.co.uk/.