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Changes in atmospheric aerosols before and after the COVID-19 global shutdown
  • Jullian Williams,
  • Alberto Mestas-Nunez,
  • Stephen Ackley
Jullian Williams
NASA Center for Advanced Measurements in Extreme Environments (CAMEE)

Corresponding Author:jullian.williams@my.utsa.edu

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Alberto Mestas-Nunez
NASA Center for Advanced Measurements in Extreme Environments (CAMEE)
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Stephen Ackley
NASA Center for Advanced Measurements in Extreme Environments (CAMEE), University of Texas at San Antonio
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Abstract

The COVID-19 virus was first detected in Wuhan, China and its genesis was traced to infected bats, passed through an intermediate host to humans. COVID-19 or “Coronavirus” reached approximately 4 million confirmed cases in the United States by July 2020. The spread of this virus has affected both social and economic affairs on a global scale with more than 15 million confirmed cases worldwide in July 2020. The pandemic has proven a global public health and socio-economic crisis. In addition, the shelter-in-place orders provide an unprecedented opportunity for examining the resulting reduction in greenhouse gases and aerosols on the atmosphere. The Sentinel-5P satellite has shown distinct changes in atmospheric aerosols over the COVID-19 epicenter in Wuhan. After Texas, U.S. established similar shelter-in-place orders to prevent the spread of the virus, the state’s industrial activity experienced an economic slowdown. This paper quantifies the changes in atmospheric aerosols associated with the COVID-19 slowdown over major cities in Texas and compares it to similar changes in Wuhan, China using satellite imagery.