How to see Air Pollution

Air pollution, like NO2 gas or tiny particles emitted by cars, is harmful even when we can’t see it. Children are more vulnerable to air pollution than adults, as their lungs are still developing, making this a big worry for schools. For other public spaces, like hospitals and city centres, the effects of air quality on general public health are also a big concern.

Because we can’t see it, it is harder to teach children and adults about it and it’s harder to inspire action to cut pollution. Wouldn’t it be so much easier if children, teachers and the general public could see how clean or polluted the air around them is, as it changes?

Knowing air pollution levels shouldn’t only be for highly trained specialists, it should be visible to all.

LuminAir: An air pollution lamp

South Coast Science has designed an innovative approach with schools, children and teachers in mind. LuminAir is a lamp that changes colour in response to the data received from an air quality monitor. Instead of technical dashboards and graphs, you only have to look at the lamp to see the air pollution levels.

It’s sensitive enough to respond to high-polluting vehicles passing by, so anyone can see changes in the air quality as they happen. To keep things as simple as possible, LuminAir uses the same intuitive colours as the UK’s Air Quality Index.

Air quality can be a contentious issue, not least when we’re looking at the causes of air pollution like passing vehicles, busy main roads or local industrial sites.

So you can be confident when using it, LuminAir is built using the South Coast Science Praxis monitor. Unlike consumer-level air quality monitors, the Praxis is independently validated by experts and MCERTS certified, ensuring that anyone watching the lamp can be confident they’re seeing a true reflection of air quality.

Can your School help us validate LuminAir?

We want to spread the word and make it easier to talk about air pollution and air quality. Is your school interested in setting up a test site, so that we can gather data about your air quality? Of course, this means your staff and pupils will be able to see and use the lamp for free.

Please email David Johnson (david.johnson@southcoastscience.com) to find out more about getting a free LuminAir kit for your School.