3...2...1...ignition! Local scientists and engineers watched their work blast into space Friday morning, and it could change how we track air pollution.
NASA's Tropospheric Emissions Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) device launched aboard a SpaceX rocket in Cape Canaveral, Florida at 12:30 a.m. TEMPO will scan and monitor air quality and pollution in North America on an hourly basis.
Project Manager Kevin Daugherty left his office at Langley Research Center to see the launch in person.
“We’re gonna have the whole team there, family members of the team. There’s gonna be a lot of enthusiasm, excitement going on in the middle of the night," he told News 3 in a Zoom call earlier in the week.
Daugherty says he and about two dozen others at Langley helped manage the project.
Once it makes it into orbit, he says TEMPO will be able to track pollution as it moves across the continent. Among the pollutants it's looking for are nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and ozone.
“People with asthma are very susceptible to it and so on high ozone days, they can find it difficult to be outside," Daugherty said.
The collected data can then be turned over to climate researchers and policymakers, but he stresses it can also find use on a day-to-day basis.
“There are people who have to check the air quality before they leave their homes in the morning because of respiratory issues and other issues. TEMPO’s air quality data has the ability to impact how air quality is predicted across the United States," said Daugherty, who adds the plan is to power up the device around Memorial Day should it make it to orbit safely.
Eventually it could work in tandem with similar instruments like "GEMS" over southeast Asia and "Sentinel-4" over Europe.
“We’re gonna start taking a look at the data across North America and I just can’t wait to see the results," he said.
Daugherty tells News 3 that TEMPO is attached to a satellite that provides internet service for airline passengers, which is scheduled to be in use at least 15 years.
