The Sky over Los Angeles: Rising temperatures affect air quality

Particulate matter and ozone are a major problem for people and the environment. Dr. Eva Pfannerstill, young investigator group leader at Jülich’s Institute of Energy and Climate Research (IEK 8), is investigating where the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) responsible for particulate matter and ozone come from and what climate change has to do with it. In her paper, which was written at the University of California, Berkeley, and recently published in Science, she sheds light on the contribution of plant and human emissions to the air quality of Los Angeles.

Catalytic converters and filter systems as well as the switch to electromobility have significantly reduced the pollution caused by vehicles emissions and industrial waste gases in recent decades. “However, air quality in megacities like Los Angeles has not improved to the same extent. It has been stagnating since about 2010,” says Dr. Eva Pfannerstill. “What other sources of volatile organic compounds are there that we may have underestimated?” she asks. The key to this answer lies in the complex interaction between nitrogen oxides from combustion processes of fossil fuels, rising temperatures, and the resulting increase in emissions from plants as well as the increasing emission rates of petrol, paints, varnishes, or artificial fragrances.