📝 All But 7 Countries Faced Unsafe Air Quality in 2024

📝 All But 7 Countries Faced Unsafe Air Quality in 2024

IQAir, a Swiss technology company that studies air quality and pollution, released its 7th annual World Air Quality Report, which revealed that all but seven countries in the world faced unsafe air quality in 2024. Data was gathered from more than 40,000 air quality monitoring stations across 8,954 locations in 138 countries for the study. The study found that 99% of the global population lives in areas that do not meet recommended air quality guideline levels, and that air pollution remains the greatest environmental threat to human health. Air pollution is also the second leading global risk factor for death. All but one of the world’s top 20 most polluted cities were in Asia, with 13 in India. In the U.S., the top 10 most polluted cities all fall within California and Texas. On the flip side, Hawaii and Washington had some of the least-polluted cities in the U.S.

Saman Shafiq, USA Today

⛽️ 36 Fossil Fuel Giants Contribute Half of CO2 Emissions

A new report by InfluenceMap revealed that 36 fossil fuel companies are responsible for over half of the world’s planet-heating carbon dioxide emissions. The burning of coal, natural gas, and oil for electricity and heat is the single-largest source of GHG emissions. Fossil fuel consumption has more than doubled in the last 50 years, with all three of the most potent GHGs (CO2, methane, an nitrous oxide) reaching record highs in 2023. Together, the 36 fossil fuel giants produced more than 20 billion tons of CO2 in 2023. Several top energy companies have even recently doubled down on fossil fuels, announcing they will be cutting renewable energy investments and instead increase oil and gas production. Some countries and businesses are still focusing on improving their standards of living and economic output rather than climate implications.

Martina Igini, Earth.org

📡 Climate Change Will Reduce the Number of Satellites in Space

MIT aerospace engineers found that greenhouse gas emissions are causing the upper atmosphere, the thermosphere, to shrink. When the thermosphere contracts, the decreasing density reduces atmospheric drag (a force that pulls old satellites and other debris down to altitudes where they will burn up). This could extend the lifetime of space junk potentially for decades and increase potential collisions in orbit. Their simulations predict that by 2100, the carrying capacity of the most popular regions could be reduced by 50-66% due to the effects of GHGs. Today, there are over 10,000 satellites drifting through low Earth Orbit, with more satellites launched in the last 5 years than the previous 60 years combined. The team at MIT is continuing their research to see if the path we’re on with GHGs and the number of satellites being launched is sustainable.

Jennifer Chu, MIT News