![]() The UWFPS was a collaborative effort between researchers at the University of Utah, Utah State University, and several other universities, as well as scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, EPA, and the Utah Department of Air Quality ( ). These include the 2016 Winter Inversion Study, which was followed by the 2017 Utah Winter Fine Particulate Study (UWFPS). Field campaigns during recent winters have studied air pollution within periods ranging from several weeks to several months along the Wasatch Front. Numerous studies have focused on wintertime elevated PM 2.5 levels in the SLV while only a few have focused on elevated summertime ozone levels. Links to real-time data displays and updated information on the quality-controlled data from this study are available on the webpage for the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Utah. The TRAX Observation Project is currently being used to provide reliable pollutant data for health studies and inform urban planning efforts. Sensors have been recently added to a third light rail train car, which travels on a north–south oriented rail line, where air quality was unable to be monitored previously. The mobile observations were able to capture spatial gradients, as well as pollutant hotspots, during both of these episodes. Three case studies from summer 2019 are presented to illustrate the strength of the finely-resolved air quality observations: (1) an elevated ozone event, (2) elevated particulate pollution resulting from 4th of July fireworks, and (3) elevated particle pollution during a winter time inversion event. Quality assurance results from data obtained over the past year show that TRAX Observation Project sensors are reliable, which corroborates earlier preliminary validation work. Pollutant concentration data underwent quality control procedures to determine whether the train motion affected the readings and how the sensors compared against regulatory sensors. ![]() Two electric light-rail train cars from the Utah Transit Authority light-rail Transit Express (“TRAX”) system were outfitted with PM 2.5 and ozone sensors to measure air quality at high spatial and temporal resolutions in this region. Pollution episodes result predominantly from local anthropogenic emissions but are also impacted by regional transport of dust, chemical precursors to ozone, and wildfire smoke, as well as being exacerbated by the topographical features surrounding the city. This metropolitan region suffers from both elevated ozone levels during summer and high PM 2.5 events during winter. Observing air quality from sensors onboard light rail cars in Salt Lake County, Utah began as a pilot study in 2014 and has now evolved into a five-year, state-funded program.
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