Changes in NO2 and O3 levels due to the pandemic lockdown in the industrial cities of Tehran and Arak, Iran using Sentinel 5P images, Google Earth Engine (GEE) and statistical analysis

Abstract

Air pollution has very damaging effects on human health. In recent years the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has created a worldwide economic disaster. Although the consequences of the COVID-19 lockdowns have had severe effects on economic and social conditions, these lockdowns also have also left beneficial effects on improving air quality and the environment. This research investigated the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on NO2 and O3 pollutants changes in the industrial and polluted cities of Arak and Tehran in Iran. Based on this, the changes in NO2 and O3 levels during the 2020 lockdown and the same period in 2019 were investigated in these two cities. For this purpose, the Sentinel-5P data of these two pollutants were used during the lockdown period from November 19 to December 05, 2020, and at the same time before the pandemic from November 19 to December 05, 2019. For better results, the effect of climatic factors such as rain and wind in reducing pollution was removed. The obtained results indicate a decrease in NO2 and O3 levels by 3.5% and 6.8% respectively in Tehran and 20.97% and 5.67% in Arak during the lockdown of 2020 compared to the same time in 2019. This decrease can be caused by the reduction in transportation and socio-economic and industrial activities following the lockdown measures. This issue can be a solid point to take a step toward controlling and reducing pollution in non-epidemic conditions by implementing similar standards and policies in the future.

Fatala River Basin (Republic of Guinea, Africa): Analysis of Current State, Air Pollution, and Anthropogenic Impact Using Geoinformatics Methods and Remote Sensing Data

“…In comparison to the Fatala River Basin, these concentrations were approximately 25 times higher in Tehran in 2019 and 40 times higher in Arak in 2019. Comparing the data reported by Gharibvand et al [66] for Iranian cities in 2019 and 2020, it can be observed that ozone concentrations are 1.1 times higher than those in the Fatala River Basin.…”

“…This concentration of pollution is primarily linked to the historical development of the However, when comparing the concentrations of chemical substances obtained through Sentinel-5P satellite data within the Fatala River Basin to other global regions, it becomes evident that the quantified pollution levels are relatively low. For instance, Gharibvand et al [66] reported that in Tehran, Iran, the average concentration of nitrogen dioxide in 2019 was 523 µmol/m 2 , and in 2020, it was 505 µmol/m 2 . In Arak, Iran, the concentration was 710 µmol/m 2 in 2019 and 56 µmol/m 2 in 2020.…”

Construction and application of economic resilience evaluation model for megacities

“…Risks and shocks, once they occur, will quickly spread along the urban network, resulting in cascading failures. For example, COVID-19 broke out at the end of 2019 and originated in the health sector but then quickly spread to the entire socio-economic network, causing the global economic recession since the 2008 financial crisis [5].…”

Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Pollutant Gases in Western Black Sea of Turkiye

“…For instance, on a global scale the Aura and Terra satellite of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the GOSAT-2 satellites of Japan and China on a regional scale are are some of the satellites used to detect air pollution (Halder et al, 2023). Currently, the NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) satellite and its MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor, as well as the Sentinel-5 satellite from the European Space Agency's Copernicus project satellite series, are the preferred choices for air pollution studies (Gharibvand, Jamali, & Amiri, 2023;Nouri, Vahidi, Hatamzadeh, Afshinfar, & Karimi, 2023). These satellite systems can measure the levels of other greenhouse gases such as carbon monoxide, methane, and nitrogen dioxide.…”