Chapter: Impact of COVID-19 measures on Atmospheric Composition

Course Description

The global Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic saw many governments take unprecedented measures to limit the spread of the virus. These measures included a mixture of social distancing, a ban on large gatherings, the closing of schools, universities, restaurants and other non-essential stores, and a reduction in air travel, the closure of borders and other non-essential travel restrictions.  Many of these measures have had a significant impact on the anthropogenic emissions in the atmosphere due to the drastic drop in road and air traffic and a strong reduction of industrial activities in non-essential sectors across the globe.

To assess these impacts, ESA started the 'Impact study of COVID-19 lockdown measures on air quality and climate' (ICOVAC) project. In this short course you will learn about what this project covered and its findings.

This short course is part of a longer ESA sponsored 'MOOC' on studying the Atmosphere from Space, that will launch soon.