Collecting Weather Air Quality Data
We offer weather air quality (pollution) data collected at the time that a survey is begun by a participant. We use the OpenWeather API. Weather is collected with GPS coordinates and has an accuracy of up to 4 decimal points, or down to the street.
Prerequisites
- Group settings
- The participant must be in a group which collects weather air quality (pollution). To enable weather air quality data collection settings, open a new Helpdesk support ticket and provide us with a group or a list of groups you want to use for collecting air quality data.
- Survey assignment
- Weather data queued for collection when the participant uploads a survey assignment. All of a participant's survey assignments initiate weather air quality (pollution) collection.
- Location
- Weather Air Quality (Pollution) data is collected in association with a survey instance when "Record Location" in User Settings is enabled, Geolocation tracking is setup, and Location permissions are granted on the participant's device. Weather Air Quality (Pollution) data cannot be collected if location is not enabled or granted, as is specific to the latitude and longitude of the participant.
Weather Air Quality (Pollution) Data
| Label | Data Type, or Description | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Air Quality Index | Different countries have their own air quality indices, corresponding to different national air quality standards. Possible values: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Where 1 = Good, 2 = Fair, 3 = Moderate, 4 = Poor, 5 = Very Poor. If you want to recalculate Air Quality indexes according UK, Europe, USA and Mainland China scales please use "Air Pollution Index levels scale" page from OpenWeather. | Grade from 1 to 5 |
| Carbon monoxide (CO) | A colorless, odorless gas produced by the incomplete combustion of carbon-containing fuels (like in car exhaust or burning wood). It can interfere with oxygen transport in the body, leading to serious health issues, especially in high concentrations. | μg/m3 |
| Nitrogen monoxide (NO) | Also known as nitric oxide, it's a colorless gas that forms when fossil fuels are burned at high temperatures (e.g., in vehicles and power plants). It reacts with other chemicals in the atmosphere to form nitrogen dioxide and contribute to air pollution. | μg/m3 |
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | A reddish-brown gas that forms from the reaction of nitrogen monoxide with oxygen in the air. It's a major component of smog and contributes to respiratory problems, acid rain, and the formation of ground-level ozone | μg/m3 |
| Ozone (O3) | A gas made up of three oxygen atoms, ozone occurs naturally in the upper atmosphere, protecting Earth from harmful UV rays. However, ground-level ozone, which forms from pollutants like NOx and VOCs in sunlight, is a harmful air pollutant that can cause respiratory issues and environmental damage. | μg/m3 |
| Sulphur dioxide (SO2) | A colorless gas with a pungent odor, produced by burning fossil fuels (especially coal) and industrial processes like metal smelting. It can irritate the respiratory system and contribute to acid rain, which harms ecosystems and buildings. | μg/m3 |
| Ammonia (NH3) | A colorless gas with a strong odor, released from agricultural activities (especially fertilizer use and livestock waste) and industrial processes. It can contribute to the formation of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and can irritate the respiratory system. | μg/m3 |
| Particulate Matter 2.5 | These are particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller. To give you an idea, these are about 30 times smaller than a human hair. Because of their small size, they can be inhaled deeply into the lungs and even enter the bloodstream, potentially causing serious health issues like respiratory and cardiovascular problems. | μg/m3 |
| Particulate Matter 10 | These are particles with a diameter of 10 micrometers or smaller. They are larger than PM2.5 particles, but still small enough to be inhaled and cause health problems. They can irritate the eyes, nose, and throat, and may contribute to respiratory conditions like asthma. | μg/m3 |
Accessing Weather Air Quality Data
Weather Air Quality data is accessed from the Selective Reports page. The Selective Reports page is found under menu 'My mEMA > Selective Reports'.
Prerequisites
- Professional account must belong to a weather permit group
- When your license includes weather air quality data, this is done by default for new professional accounts under your license. If an account is unable to view weather air quality data on the Selective Reports page, please create a new Helpdesk support ticket.
- Professional account must be an editor on surveys in order to select a survey and participants for Weather Air Quality (Pollution) data download.
Weather Air Quality (Pollution) data is downloaded by selecting a group or groups of participants, the survey or surveys assigned to those participants, and any number of those participants. You may select all possible options to download all possible data, or select only some groups, surveys, or participants. 
Once you have selected your download options, scroll to the bottom of the page to the Reports box for the Weather Data download options. You may preview the data on the Selective Reports page, or download a CSV file.
Here is an example of some weather data displayed on the Report from Selective Reports page.
