A deep learning approach for meter-scale air quality estimation in urban environments using very high-spatial-resolution satellite imagery
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Author(s)
Sorek-Hamer, Meytar
Von Pohle, Michael
Sahasrabhojanee, Adwait
Akbari Asanjan, Ata
Deardorff, Emily
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
High-spatial-resolution air quality (AQ) mapping is important for identifying pollution sources to facilitate local action. Some of the most populated cities in the world are not equipped with the infrastructure required to monitor AQ levels on the ground and must rely on other sources, such as satellite derived estimates, to monitor AQ. Current satellite-data-based models provide AQ mapping on a kilometer scale at best. In this study, we focus on producing hundred-meter-scale AQ maps for urban environments in developed cities. We examined the feasibility of an image-based object-detection analysis approach using very high-spatial-resolution (2.5 m) commercial satellite imagery. We fed the satellite imagery to a deep neural network (DNN) to learn the association between visual urban features and air pollutants. The developed model, which solely uses satellite imagery, was tested and evaluated using both ground monitoring observations and land-use regression modeled PM2.5 and NO2 concentrations over London, Vancouver (BC), Los Angeles, and New York City. The results demonstrate a low error with a total RMSE < 2 µg/m3 and highlight the contribution of specific urban features, such as green areas and roads, to continuous hundred-meter-scale AQ estimations. This approach offers promise for scaling to global applications in developed and developing urban environments. Further analysis on domain transferability will enable application of a parsimonious model based merely on satellite images to create hundred-meter-scale AQ maps in developing cities, where current and historical ground data are limited.
Date Issued
2022-04-27
Date Acceptance
2022-04-25
Citation
Atmosphere, 2022, 13 (5), pp.1-16
ISSN
2073-4433
Publisher
MDPI AG
Start Page
1
End Page
16
Journal / Book Title
Atmosphere
Volume
13
Issue
5
Copyright Statement
© 2022 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Sponsor
Wellcome Trust
Environment Agency
Identifier
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/13/5/696
Grant Number
209376/Z/17/Z
1080358-364865
Subjects
0401 Atmospheric Sciences
0502 Environmental Science and Management
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2022-04-27