Morning surface temperature inversions (MSTIS) from Allegheny County,PA to Beijing, China: formation factors, health effects, and applications

In recent years, concern about air quality has increased as we better understand the relationship between air pollution and health, not only of humans and animals but also of the environment. This essay looks at the ways that scientists categorize air pollution as well as the types of air pollution and explores some of the health effects of exposure to air pollutants. Morning surface temperature inversions (MSTIs) are described and how air dispersion conditions might elevate the severity and duration of air pollution is explored. A method to use MSTIs to forecast potentially dangerous air pollution, developed in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, is applied to data in Beijing, China, an approach that is supported by the similar geographical and environmental conditions the two regions share. This paper only utilizes the MSTIs detecting method, part of the entire forecasting method, to test preliminarily if the method is applicable to Beijing, China. The emergency heavy pollution alerts in Beijing was introduced in this paper, as a potential application field for MSTIs forecasting method in Beijing, China. Results of the preliminary test in Beijing data indicate that there is a promising future for application MSTIs method of Allegheny County to Beijing, China with some criteria adjusted needed to fit Beijing’s situation. A full-time and caliber-consistent equipment is suggested to collect more accurate data for future MSTIs research. Results of the use of the MTSIs method show that some opportunities to warn Beijing residents of potentially dangerous air pollution were missed, and that alerts can sometimes be issued when none is warranted. Public Health Statement: Information sharing is one way that governments can help protect the health of their citizens; establishing policies that limit polluting emissions is another