By Brian Jules Campued
The Philippines will team up with its Asian neighbors and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to study and address air quality issues in the region, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga announced over the weekend.
According to a statement from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Saturday, the partnership called Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (Asia-AQ) will involve experts from South Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and Thailand’s Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency.
Loyzaga said that engineers and air quality specialists from the Environment Management Bureau will board with NASA as it conducts scientific research flights over Metro Manila and its surrounding regions.
The Philippine delegation will also include the Philippine Space Agency, Manila Observatory, Ateneo de Manila University, and University of the Philippines.
The Asia-AQ project will use advanced satellite technology, ground-based observations, and airborne missions to gain a better understanding of the air quality problems in Metro Manila and 11 other Asian cities.
The other candidate cities, according to the NASA Langley Research Center, are Seoul (South Korea), Tokyo (Japan), Taiwan, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam), Bangkok (Thailand), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Singapore, Dhaka (Bangladesh), and Kolkata and Delhi (India).
Loyzaga noted that the collaboration with NASA and other partners will provide significant advances in the understanding of air pollution through better air quality models and accurate forecasts.
“The data gathered from the research flights will be used in our programs to mitigate air quality issues that affect public health and address climate change,” she added.
The DENR secretary did not mention when the research flights will commence, but NASA Langley said on its website that the multinational field study will be conducted in early 2024. -av
