NASA Airborne Mission Chases Air Pollution Through the Seasons

Earth is a planet that breathes with the seasons. In winter months atmospheric gases and air pollution accumulate, waiting dormant until spring and summer bring sunshine and plant-life, sparking transformations that change the make-up of gases in the atmosphere. A NASA airborne mission will take a world-wide survey of these seasonal transformations by flying from the heart of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, down into the sunny summer in the Southern Hemisphere and back again.

NASA’s DC-8 flying laboratory in Kona, Hawaii, on ATom’s first deployment in August 2016. Credits: NASA/Roisin Commane
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