ACADEMIA Letters

Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases

of Real-time Air Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and
Phone apps)
Francis Olawale Abulude, Science and Education Development Institute, Akure,
Ondo State, Nigeria

Nine (9) million people died prematurely as a result of air, land, and water pollution in 2016,
accounting for 16% of all deaths worldwide (WHO, 2018). About 92 % of all pollution-related
death rates occurs in low- and middle-income nations, with the poverty stricken, marginalized,
and young people bearing the brunt of the consequences. The financial cost is enormous: in
2016, ambient air pollution cost the global economy US$5.7 trillion, accounting for 4.8 %.
The World Bank assists polluted nations by significantly contributing in pollution control, en-
couraging knowledge creation and sharing, and raising awareness about the harmful impact on
global health. In recent years, stakeholders in low- and middle-income nations have expressed
an immediate need for increased pollution management assistance in order to respond to the
increasing frequency of the threat to human health and economies. Pollution response is a
problem that can be solved in the short term to save lives and open up economic opportunities
through action at the local, national, regional, and global levels. According to studies, annual
PM2.5 levels in some urban centers are up to 5 times greater than the World Health Organi-
zation (WHO, 2018) lower limit for health-harmful levels. From these findings, air pollution
is now the leading cause of mortality in Africa, surpassing AIDS-related deaths.
One of the reasons for the problem of air pollution-related health in most countries, par-
ticularly in developing countries, is a lack of awareness and information. Because of the birth
and growth of the internet of things (IoT) and citizen science in developed countries, there is
now awareness and good information dissemination, but not in developing countries. Many
people are unaware of the causes, effects, and link between air pollution and health prob-

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
1
lems. Many stakeholders lack information (data) on air quality, and as a result, they lack the
knowledge to provide the necessary solutions. On this basis, the presence of satellite data and
pollution monitoring apps installed on phones would be extremely beneficial in reducing air
pollution. The satellite and phone apps provide accurate and inexpensive data on websites
and phones. They provide data for monitoring air pollution in cities, rural areas, and around
the world. Cities can monitor pollutant levels over time, map areas of high pollution, and
pinpoint the sources of air pollution with real-time and continuous air quality data (Abulude
and Abulude, 2021).
Many satellite data sets contain an air quality index, which depicts the extent of air pollu-
tion at a specific location. Many monitoring networks also provide real-time rankings of the
countries and cities with the worst air quality on their web link. Data on current air quality
conditions in various locations, as well as information on the major pollutants and their levels,
adhered to the Environmental Protection Agency’s standards (EPA).
The data from the satellite offer maps that inform people from various municipalities
about their outdoor air quality and personalize the details for groups that are more prone to
be impacted by various levels of pollution. The outcomes for each day help determine where
and when the air results are better for residents.
Air pollution was once imperceptible. Currently, air quality apps reveal pollution peaks
and clean air moments throughout the day in cities and around the world. It’s as simple as
checking the weather, and it’s right on the phone. Sensors are deployed to the locations and
registered with monitoring networks for these apps to be effective. The obtained data can be
downloaded from the monitoring network sites via the phones. The data is accurate, action-
able, and reliable, and it could be used for physical conditioning, wellness, training, smart
home integration, or take trips. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are used to vali-
date the data points.
The network monitors provide data for air quality forecasting via satellite and app. This
always helps citizens (sportsmen, the elderly, children, and others) schedule their activities
ahead of time. Some even include information on the following topics: AQI, Air Pollution
Level, Health Implications, and Cautionary Statement. The Air Quality Index scale as defined
by the US-EPA 2016 standard is shown in Table 1. Table 2 depicts data providers, pollutants,
and weather, as well as their connections.

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
2
 Table 1: Sensitive Groups and the Air Quality Index

Several similar citizen science projects have been launched in Europe, Germany, the
United States, Canada, and elsewhere. Low-cost sensors, for example, were mounted on bicy-
cles, automobiles, and public transportation vehicles to continuously transmit air quality data
to servers (Castell et al., 2016; Schneider et al., 2017). Many maps of air quality data have
been created in the developed world. If one searches the internet, one will discover that very
few of these activities take place in Africa.

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
3
 Table 2 depicts data providers, pollutants, and weather, as well as their connections.

Below is the list of Phone Apps that are useful for air pollution monitoring:

• Air quality/Air Visual

• Live Pollution Check

• Air Pollution Check

• Pollution Care

• Air Quality

• Plume Labs

• Pollution Meter

• Air Pollution Monitor

• Weather and Air Pollution Monitor

• Air Quality - Air Care

• Air Quality Index - Ambee

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
4
 • Air Quality: Real Time AQI

• Air Meter

• Airlief - Personal Air Pollution

• Air - Pollution Around You

• Air Pollution Index - Air Quality

• Delhi Institute of Tool Engineering - AQI

• PurpleAir

Abbreviations
CAR-NASRDA - Center for Atmospheric Research - National Space Research and Develop-
ment Agency (Kogi State, Nigeria)

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
5
References
Abulude F.O. and Abulude, I.A. (2021). Monitoring Air Quality in Nigeria: The Case of Cen-
ter for Atmospheric Research-National Space Research and Development Agency (CAR-
NASRDA). Aerosol Science and Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41810-021-00116-
3.

Castell, N., Liu, H., Dauge, F.R., Kobernus, M., Berre, A.J., Noll, J., Cagatay, E., and Gang-
dal , R. (2016). Supporting Sustainable Mobility Using Mobile Technologies and Person-
alized Environmental Information: The Citi-Sense-MOB Approach in Oslo, Norway. In
Marx Gómez, J. et al. (eds.), Advances and New Trends in Environmental and Energy
Informatics, 199–218. doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23455-7.

Schneider, P., Castell, N., Vogt, M., Dauge, F.R., Lahoz, W.A., and Bartonova, A. (2017).
Mapping urban air quality in near real-time using observations from low-cost sensors and
model information. Environment International. Volume 106, 234-247. https://doi.org/10.
1016/j.envint.2017.05.005

WHO (2018). More than 90% of the world’s children breathe toxic air every day. https://
www.who.int/news/item/29-10-2018-more-than-90-of-the-worlds-children-breathe-toxic-
air-every-day. Accessed 12th January, 2021.

Academia Letters, August 2021 ©2021 by the author — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0

Corresponding Author: Francis Olawale Abulude, walefut@gmail.com

Citation: Abulude, F.O. (2021). Right and Cheap Information on Air Quality: The Cases of Real-time Air
Quality Index Monitors (Satellite and Phone apps). Academia Letters, Article 3401.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3401.
6