Researcher deploys cutting-edge technology to assess smoke from Los Angeles area fires

As the Los Angeles region faces severe wildland-urban interface fires, scientists are racing to understand the complex mix of pollutants from burning homes, vehicles and infrastructure that remain largely unknown. Shantanu Jathar, PhD, a Colorado State University researcher supported by the Climate Program Office’s Atmospheric Chemistry, Carbon and Climate Cycle (AC4) program, deploys critical air quality assets to carry out single air pollution measurements in the area of ​​fire and smoke. Dr. Jathar’s ongoing work contributes to a grant project awarded through an AC4 initiative to study fire and smoke at the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), focused on understanding emissions and smoke structural fires (e.g. buildings and household materials) in WUI events. Drawing expertise from this ongoing research, Dr Jathar has deployed portable ‘Airpen’ systems to capture real-time data on pollutants such as PM2.5, black carbon and hazardous compounds like hydrocarbons polycyclic aromatics and perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances during and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the and after the people The fires in progress. Much like the Covid-era mobility restrictions, the latest fires once again provide an opportunity for atmospheric chemists to understand air pollution – this time from a growing threat of fire on the WUI. Such fires lead to pollution that has not been studied, or even experienced, before – a complex but little-understood mix of chemicals as fires consume homes, cars, and everything in them.