as well as cleaner water and more vibrant wildlife, lockdown measures as a result of coronavirus are demonstrating a positive impact on the air we breath. new satellite images and personal testimonies showed that air pollution had decreased in urban areas across europe and america as a result of there being fewer people, and more importantly, less cars.
image via electrek
as electrek’s editor-in-chief fred lambert reports from california where he lives, the effects can be felt across LA:
‘we have a great view from our backyard and can see miles out,’ he writes. ‘however, due to the smog that surrounds los angeles, we were only able to see the san gabriel mountains and downtown la a day or two after the smog is cleared by the rain – then it’s back to seeing only a few miles out.’
‘but now it hasn’t rained in a week and we can see further out than I’ve ever seen in the last 3 months. we can see all the way to the cucamonga peak, which is a good 50 miles from here. of course, that’s only anecdotal evidence, but the data is starting to back it up.’
the evidence lamber references includes a map of nitrogen dioxide captured from satelittle images that shows a massive reduction compared to just two months ago. the data gathered during the crisis is expected to be used to better understand how human activity produces emissions in different regions.
cities including brussels, paris, madrid, milan and frankfurt showed a reduction in average levels of noxious nitrogen dioxide over march 5-25, compared with the same period last year, according to the sentinel-5 satellite images. the new images, released by the european space agency (ESA) and analyzed by the non-profit european public health alliance (epha), show the changing density of nitrogen dioxide, which can cause respiratory problems and cancer, like heat maps.
assuming that one of the main reasons for this is a widespread reduction in vehicle usage, lambert points out that the images demonstrate the powerful impact that widespread electric vehicle adoption could have on the air we breath:
‘if everyone who is staying home these days were driving electric cars powered by renewable energy when they go back to their regular commute, we would keep this incredible air quality going forward,’ he continues. ‘we are still quite far from that goal, but we could take this opportunity to double down our effort to accelerate electric vehicle adoption.’
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technology news
the soul of the past with a clean energy spirit: zero labs reveals classic electric land rover
#technology
the land rover will come with either an 85 or 100 kwh battery with a range reaching up to 235 miles, making 300-600 horsepower.
the land rover will come with either an 85 or 100 kwh battery with a range reaching up to 235 miles, making 300-600 horsepower.
watch how NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will navigate itself to an asteroid
#technology
to arrive at the asteroid's surface, OSIRIS-REx will use an onboard image software known as natural feature tracking (NFT).
to arrive at the asteroid's surface, OSIRIS-REx will use an onboard image software known as natural feature tracking (NFT).
NOMOTO is an unrecognizable, graffiti-covered motorbike concept by joey ruiter
#technology
'I wanted to create a piece that's completely unnoticeable and so familiar, you're just going to walk past it.'
'I wanted to create a piece that's completely unnoticeable and so familiar, you're just going to walk past it.'
tesla cybertruck's steel body can be heated to spectrum of colors
#technology
affecting the metal's chemicals, different heated temperatures cause the car's steel body to change in shade.
affecting the metal's chemicals, different heated temperatures cause the car's steel body to change in shade.
One feature of electric vehicles is parking endurence. Six months, a year, more, check your tires and go! With the travel restrictions due the virus this is important.
jack16
I have been saying this for sometime that all EV and no gas guzzlers would make cities have clean air. The same as rural areas. A big start would be that gas car companies stop making the polluter vehicles and change to EV including PUs. Yes there would be a lot of unemployed from oil and car companies. However car companies had huge layoffs when all the imports came back 1980s. Those individuals all found employment or retrained. It is time to make a big change like trains did when the end of steam power happened
I must confess I am a bit surprised that such a complex topic is treated kind of superficially. An article that promoted electric mobility should also mention it’s (quite significant) side effects such as the source of the electricity, which is most of the times coal, so neither a renewable, nor an ecological source, and such as the production of lithium-ion batteries that are needed for this cars. Lithium-ion battery factories not only destroy and pollute the environment, but also disrupts the lives and business of locals living in the areas where the factories are built. Not to mention the CO2 levels emitted in the production of a single one of these batteries and the extremely limited possibilities of recycling these batteries. All in all, I believe it would be more fair if all the pros and cons would be mentioned in such articles.