This video has been produced in partnership with EUMETSAT.

The German Aerospace Center's (DLR) High Altitude and Long Rage Research Aircraft (HALO) is an aircraft for atmospheric research and EO. It is available for appropriate research programmes anywhere in Europe.

One of the research projects that HALO has been used for, is the Effect of Megacities on the Transport and Transformation of Pollutants on the Regional to Global Scales (EMeRGe) mission, which is led by the University of Bremen.

EMeRGe aims to investigate experimentally the patterns of atmospheric transport and transformation of pollution plumes originating from Eurasia and both tropical and subtropical Asian megacities and MPCs. The first stage was in May – August 2017 in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. The 2nd stage took place in Asian megacities including Beijing, Taiwan, Tokyo, and Manila in March-April 2018. Measurements from HALO provide novel information on the source strengths, atmospheric transport, and transformation of pollution plumes of varying chemical composition emitted by different large urban agglomerates having different emission characteristics. The investigation of the vertical and horizontal chemical evolution of the outflow will provide essential information required to improve understanding and to quantify the impacts of megacities on regional and global effects of their air pollution.

EMeRGe focused on photochemical O3 formation, and making measurements on nitrogen oxides (NOx, NOy), carbon monoxide (CO), Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), UV radiation and the relevant photolysis frequencies upwind and downwind of selected megacities. It also looked at the vertical transport of O3, the long range transport of air pollution from megacities. And the evolution of radiative properties of emissions of megacities by comparative measurement of aerosol particle properties and composition upwind and downwind of selected megacities.

Featured Educator

• Dr Maria Dolores Andrés Hernández, Senior Scientist, University of Bremen

In partnership with EUMETSAT