Skip to Content
Climate change and energy

Satellites will let us track air pollution from every power plant in the world

A power plant
A power plantAssociated Press

Air pollution is the fifth biggest global mortality risk, causing five million early deaths every year.

The news: Artificial-intelligence nonprofit WattTime plans to use satellite imagery to monitor the air pollution and carbon emissions generated by each power plant around the world, in real time, and it will make this data public, Vox reports.

How? It will take data from a variety of satellites, including data from thermal infrared cameras that detect heat. These images will then be processed by various algorithms for signs of emissions. By checking visible smoke, heat, and nitrous dioxide, WattTime hopes it will be able to deduce precise, real-time emissions for each individual power plant.

The potential impact: The hope is that tracking the problem more accurately will take us one step closer to tackling it. Making this data available to the public could help to pile on the pressure. That said, we’ve already got a good idea of the scale of the climate emergency we’re facing. More data doesn’t necessarily guarantee action.

This story first appeared in our daily newsletter, The Download. Sign up here to get your dose of the latest must-read news from the world of emerging tech.

Deep Dive

Climate change and energy

Harvard has halted its long-planned atmospheric geoengineering experiment

The decision follows years of controversy and the departure of one of the program’s key researchers.

Why hydrogen is losing the race to power cleaner cars

Batteries are dominating zero-emissions vehicles, and the fuel has better uses elsewhere.

How virtual power plants are shaping tomorrow’s energy system

By orchestrating EVs, batteries, and smart home devices, VPPs can help make the grid cleaner and more efficient.

The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.

Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.