Application of satellite data and GIS services for studying air pollutants in Lithuania (case study: Kaunas city)

Abstract

Satellite remote sensing, with its relatively short history, is going to play a major role in the fields that encompass topics related to place and space. Through this innovation in technology, real-time monitoring and mapping of changing phenomena on the surface of the earth has been possible. The purpose of this study was to investigate and evaluate the Kaunas city air pollutants between 14 and 25 October 2019 using environmental station data and satellite data (Terra, Aqua, OMI, and Sentinel-5P). The data obtained from satellite and the pollutant data gathered from air quality monitoring stations located in different parts of Kaunas were used. The data was downloaded for days mentioned above for the geographical bound of Kaunas city. Each data file covered an area of the size of Lithuania; hence, we should have extracted data for the area of interest, which was Kaunas city. The overall results of this study confirmed the capability of Sentinel-5P data to be used in monitoring the air quality and air pollution over the Kaunas local area. The existence of strong and acceptable correlations between satellite data and in situ measurements was indicative of the ability of satellite images to monitor air pollution, particularly over Kaunas urban areas during the fire incident in the city of Alytus.