View our polluted earth from outer space.....

[JPace]

World's pollution hotspots revealed from space
16:42 12 October 04
NewScientist.com news service

http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996515

Enlarge the photograph...

[RobertSeattle]

1. I wonder what China is going to do prior to 2008 Olympics?

It's going to be a world class embarrassment for the Chinese if the air is extremely polluted in Peking the summer of 2008.

[hatrack]

6. Easy - use both of GM's fuel-cell SUVs to ferry athletes to meets

That is, if they're ready by then . . .

[movie_girl99]

2. very cool

thanks for posting.

[arcane1]

3. that is too cool

I have a new wallpaper now... as if I didn't have enough to depress me

[prodigal_green]

4. Looks like we're the most polluted country

on a percentage basis...

I wonder if there are any maps for C02 and other pollutants.

[On the Road]

5. Wow -- That's Interesting

Japan looks surprisingly clean for such a densely settled industrial country. Most of Western Europe, too, except for northern Italy and northern Germany/Netherlands/Denmark.

The Arabian peninsula is surprisingly dirty, as is Zimbabwe (or Mozambique). California is much more localized than you would expect.

[HamdenRice]

7. On the other hand ...

There is a truly great article in the current issue of the New Yorker about the paradox of urban pollution -- it says that New York city is overall environmentally very benign, because it concentrates pollution in a very small place where it can be managed and is fantastically energy efficient.

In other words, taken as a whole, New York is very polluted. But on a per capita basis, it is one of the least polluting places on the planet. Think of it this way: imagine some 6 million new yorkers scattered across the country in suburbs, driving everywhere, heating homes rather than little apartments, owning garbage disposals (not allowed in NYC), etc. This article said it would take a land mass as large as all the New England states plus New Jersey to house the population of New York in suburban conditions!

[RobertSeattle]

9. On a similar theme

Most of 1900 to 1940's era housing plots in the City of Seattle are 50x100 lots. That may seem "small" by current suburbian standard (1/4 acre+ are the norm), but the planner of Seattle in the early 1900's had no problem with it and you can put plenty of house on a 50x100 lot as long as you go vertical. I wonder what suburbia would be like if we could have forced lots to be smaller.

[CityZen-X]

8. Mama E!

I am so sick of what the Corporate Criminal Empire is doing to our beloved planet, that I am willing to spill my last drop of blood to put a halt to their Faustian Machinations!

[enough]

10. This map should be in every town hall, post office, mall entrance,

EVERYWHERE in our country. The effect is stunning.

Thanks for posting this.

[Squeech]

11. N.B. This basically tracks internal combustion engines

and power plants.

Note the excerpt in the article, which is China and southeast Asia. Note that there is a distinct blotch for Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, but not for the other Indonesian islands where the forest fires are.

Now look at China. There's half the reason for oil at over $50/bbl.

[Dob Bole]

12. I can see the orange dot on Atlanta!

Everywhere else around it is fairly clear...but that is mostly rural.

[TahitiNut]

13. Another reason I wish I were back in the SFBay area ...

... instead of the Detroit area. (sigh) (cough)

I guess it could be worse. I could be in Cleveland. :shrug:

[Kellanved]

14. a few more pictures [big]

http://www.esa.int/export/esaEO/SEM340NKPZD_index_0.html

[Spider Jerusalem]

15. Hm....one of those hot spots is right where I am.

If you look at the map, the reddish-orange spot to the north of Florida is metropolitan Atlanta. The others are places I'd have pretty much expected, too, except I wasn't really aware things were QUITE so bad in China.

[symbolman]

16. I don't see

Hawaii on there.. guess we don't count.. we do have Some Sulphur Dioxide, but I think that's about it..

Unless you count the pesky whale pollution, damn things are all over the place around Christmas :)