Pollution

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  • A young woman wearing the Dyson Zone headphones and breathing mask leans over the subway platform edge to see if a train is coming.

    We put the Dyson Zone’s air filters to the test. Here’s what we found.

    Engadget investigated the Dyson Zone, an air-purifying wearable, to understand how the device works to remove pollutants from the air.

    Malak Saleh
    09.19.2023
  • WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 14: Applied Sciences Health and Air Quality Associate Program Manager at NASA Laura Judd speaks during a news briefing on NASA’s TEMPO instrument at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum on March 14, 2023 in Washington, DC. The NASA and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory hold a briefing on NASA's TEMPO (Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution) instrument, "the first space-based instrument to observe major air pollutants across North America every hour during the daytime." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

    NASA reveals pollution maps gathered by the TEMPO space instrument

    NASA has published the first maps from its new space-based pollution instrument, TEMPO (Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution). Although you won’t be shocked to learn it reveals higher pollution rates in metropolitan areas, the tool can help scientists better study North American air quality on an hourly basis. “Neighborhoods and communities across the country will benefit from TEMPO’s game-changing data for decades to come,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson wrote in a press release today.

    Will Shanklin
    08.24.2023
  • IKEA Vindstyrka indoor air quality monitor

    IKEA made a smart air quality sensor to track indoor pollution

    IKEA has released a smart indoor air quality monitor that might improve your health.

    Jon Fingas
    02.14.2023
  • SAN FRANCISCO, CA - NOVEMBER 29: A United Airlines plane takeoff from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in San Francisco, California, United States on November 29, 2022. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

    Hitting the Books: That time San Francisco's suburbs sued the airport for being too loud

    Dr. Eric Porter, Professor of History at UC Santa Cruz, examines how San Francisco International came to be and the challenges it will face in a climate changing 21st century in his latest work, A People's History of SFO: The Making of the Bay Area and an Airport.

    Andrew Tarantola
    01.22.2023
  • GM recognizes California's authority to set its own vehicle emissions standards

    GM recognizes California's authority to set its own vehicle emissions standards

    GM has reversed course on its emissions policy, saying it now recognizes California's authority to set its own vehicle pollution standards.

    Steve Dent
    01.11.2022
  • Rush hour traffic with smog.related:

    EPA announces strictest fuel efficiency standards ever, reversing Trump-era rollback

    On Monday, the Biden administration finalized new fuel efficiency standards designed to limit greenhouse gas emissions put out by passenger vehicles.

    Igor Bonifacic
    12.20.2021
  • Nature-inspired robots are among the tiniest flying devices yet

    'Flying' microchips could ride the wind to track air pollution

    Researchers have created a winged microchip around the size of a sand grain that may be the smallest flying device yet made.

    Steve Dent
    09.23.2021
  • The Bay Bridge is seen under an orange sky darkened by the smoke from California wildfires in San Francisco, California, U.S., September 9, 2020. REUTERS/Stephen Lam TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

    Google's Nest Hub will display air quality levels as wildfire season continues

    Google is updating its Nest Hub displays with a new feature that displays the air quality index (AQI).

    Steve Dent
    08.13.2021
  • This aerial image taken on June 6, 2019 shows a steel factory in Chengde, China's northern Hebei province. (Photo by FRED DUFOUR / AFP) (Photo credit should read FRED DUFOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

    China is launching a public data platform to name and shame polluters

    China is about to launch a data platform that lets the public and officials catch companies violating emissions rules.

    Jon Fingas
    02.06.2021
  • Deutsche Bahn and Siemens Mireo Plus H hydrogen train

    Germany's national rail operator will experiment with hydrogen trains

    Germany’s national rail operator Deutsche Bahn has announced that it’s developing a hydrogen-powered train with an eye to replacing diesel trains.

    Steve Dent
    11.26.2020
  • Mercedes-Benz

    Daimler settles its emissions scandal lawsuit for nearly $3 billion

    Daimler will pay approximately $1.5 billion to settle with US regulators.

    Igor Bonifacic
    08.13.2020
  • An empty freeway intersection is seen two days before Earth Day, after Los Angeles’ stay-at-home order caused a drop in pollution, as the global outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Pasadena, near Los Angeles, California, U.S., April 20, 2020. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson REFILE - CORRECTING LOCATION

    Atmospheric CO2 hits a record high while emissions drop

    New data published by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography shows that the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has reached a record monthly high of 417 parts per million (ppm).

    Jen Diaz
    06.05.2020
  • NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 07: The view looking east along an empty 42nd street in Times Square amid the coronavirus pandemic on May 7, 2020 in New York City. COVID-19 has spread to most countries around the world, claiming over 270,000 lives with over 3.9 million cases. (Photo by Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

    NASA backs studies on environmental effects of COVID-19 lockdowns

    NASA is funding studies showing how COVID-19 lockdowns have affected air, sea and light pollution around the world.

    Jon Fingas
    05.13.2020
  • NASA/Joshua Stevens, using modified Copernicus Sentinel 5P data processed by the European Space Agency.

    NASA maps show the effect of a quarantine on air pollution

    "This is the first time I have seen such a dramatic drop-off over such a wide area for a specific event," said NASA air quality researcher Fei Liu. She made that statement after NASA's Earth Observatory released maps showing a dramatic drop in air pollution in the Wuhan region. Industrial output in the region would have already been down significantly due to the Lunar New Year. However, a government quarantine designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease COVID-19 made pollution drop much more significantly and for a longer period.

    Steve Dent
    03.03.2020
  • welcomia via Getty Images

    DOJ reportedly ends antitrust investigation over reducing car pollution

    Last year the Trump Administration sought to roll back the Obama Administration's Clean Power Plan that pushed for higher fuel efficiency standards. It has also tried to stop states from like California from setting their own standards that exceed those of the federal government. Despite that, several automakers, including Ford, BMW, Volkswagen and Honda, voluntarily reached an agreement with the state of California on a slightly lower target. That was quickly followed by word of a Department of Justice antitrust investigation into the move, however today the New York Times reports it has come to an end, finding that the companies didn't break any laws by voluntarily agreeing to try to reduce the pollution created by their vehicles.

    Richard Lawler
    02.07.2020
  • Dyson

    Dyson patents a wearable air purifier that doubles as headphones

    If you use public transportation, you know just how gross the air can be. Commuters are constantly coughing and sneezing, which releases thousands of germs into the air. Taking a flight can be even worse, thanks to the recycled air. And that's not to mention pollution-filled cities like Wuhan in China, or even Los Angeles. Wearing a face mask can help prevent you from breathing in those germs and pollutants, but they're not very effective, and they're not exactly socially acceptable. Air purifiers that hang around your neck are subtler, but they're even less beneficial. Dyson's patent for a new type of purifier describes a product that merges an air purification system with a set of headphones for an effective but somewhat subtle solution to staying healthy in germ- or pollution-filled settings.

    Marc DeAngelis
    02.04.2020

  • Canada charges Volkswagen over its diesel emissions scandal

    Volkswagen's "dieselgate" woes continue as Canada has accused the automaker of importing 128,000 vehicles that contravene its environmental laws, according to Reuters. The nation charged VW with 60 counts of violating the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and two counts of providing misleading information. A VW spokesperson said that it's cooperating fully with the ECCC (Environment and Climate Change Canada).

    Steve Dent
    12.10.2019
  • Playlab/Family New York/Floating Point

    Floating LED art illustrates the quality of NYC's water

    You don't have to check a website to find out whether or not New York City's water is healthy -- for the next few months, you just have to take a look at some art in the water itself. Playlab, Family New York and Floating Point have debuted a floating art installation, + POOL Light, that displays the water quality in NYC's East River using LED lights. The 50x50 feet sculpture glows blue if all is well, but it turns teal if a sensor detects pathogens and pink when those levels venture beyond safe swimming standards. The brightness, frequency and sharpness of the lights respectively indicate the oxygen, turbidity (the cloudiness based on particulates) and pH levels, while the light animation changes to reflect the current's direction.

    Jon Fingas
    10.05.2019
  • AP Photo/Color China Photo

    Daimler's diesel emissions cheating may include 60,000 more cars

    Daimler is already in hot water for its alleged diesel emissions cheating, but it's about to get worse. Bild am Sonntag has learned that German regulators have discovered evidence of cheating software in roughly 60,000 GLK 220 CDI models made between 2012 and 2015. That's not a small amount -- officials had asked Daimler to recall 700,000 vehicles worldwide, so this represents a nearly 9 percent increase based on one model line.

    Jon Fingas
    04.14.2019
  • FRED TANNEAU via Getty Images

    Why Garfield phones have littered French beaches for 35 years

    There's no better symbol of plastic ocean pollution and '80s consumerism gone wild than the Garfield phones of Brittany. The handsets, in the form of the aggressively unfunny cat, have been washing up on French beaches for decades. However, the novelty has long since worn off for residents who have been picking them up since the '80s. Now, a local anti-litter group called Ar Vilantsou has finally found the source: a lost shipping container.

    Steve Dent
    03.31.2019
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