Category: Health & Infectious Disease

Project by Nicole Ngo:

In the planetary boundary layer (PBL) (loosely defined as the layer < 1 km above the surface), pollutants travel smaller distances and have shorter residence times relative to those in the upper troposphere.  As a result, understanding the processes by which pollutants can be transported to the upper troposphere is critical. One way this can occur is by deep convective cloud systems. In this study, we observe how deep convection influences the distribution of an insoluble or less soluble chemical species, like carbon monoxide (CO), O3, and NOx, within the troposphere. This is done by using a Lagrangian approach that traces particles along a simulated time-evolving, three-dimensional wind field associated with a deep convection system.

Project by Nicole Ngo:

There are few large urban areas in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), but the cities in SSA are rapidly expanding.  As such, there is increasing concern over urban planning and coping with a growing urban population, including mitigating environmental health problems.  Of particular concern is air pollution.  There have been few studies examining urban air pollution in SSA (to my knowledge, < 5 studies), but a 2-week study in the summer of 2009 in Nairobi found that particulate matter (PM) emitted from vehicles was more than 10 times that of World Health Organization standards.  This project will continue the efforts to monitor urban air pollution in Nairobi, not only for its health impacts but also its influence on climate change.

Project by Nicole Ngo:

There is concern over the public health issues concerning black carbon (BC), a species of particulate matter.  One major source of BC in urban areas is vehicles that use diesel, such as trucks or buses.  To examine population exposure, studies have used data from monitors that  measure background pollution, since they are cheaper than having individuals carry around monitors.  Though, there’s evidence that BC decays quickly from sources, such as roadways.  As a result, monitors may not properly capture population exposure.  To better understand if monitors are capturing some trend from the road or pure noise, I use the Clean Fuel Bus Program in NYC to see if variations in types of buses (e.g., diesel buses, hybrid buses, CNG buses) along bus routes by monitors are captured by the monitors.