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Abstract India is largely devoid of high‐quality and reliable on‐the‐ground measurements of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). Ground‐level PM2.5concentrations are estimated from publicly available satellite Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) products combined with other information. Prior research has largely overlooked the possibility of gaining additional accuracy and insights into the sources of PM using satellite retrievals of tropospheric trace gas columns. We evaluate the information content of tropospheric trace gas columns for PM2.5estimates over India within a modeling testbed using an Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) approach, which selects from a menu of different machine learning tools based on the data set. We then quantify the relative information content of tropospheric trace gas columns, AOD, meteorological fields, and emissions for estimating PM2.5over four Indian sub‐regions on daily and monthly time scales. Our findings suggest that, regardless of the specific machine learning model assumptions, incorporating trace gas modeled columns improves PM2.5estimates. We use the ranking scores produced from the AutoML algorithm and Spearman’s rank correlation to infer or link the possible relative importance of primary versus secondary sources of PM2.5as a first step toward estimating particle composition. Our comparison of AutoML‐derived models to selected baseline machine learning models demonstrates that AutoML is at least as good as user‐chosen models. The idealized pseudo‐observations (chemical‐transport model simulations) used in this work lay the groundwork for applying satellite retrievals of tropospheric trace gases to estimate fine particle concentrations in India and serve to illustrate the promise of AutoML applications in atmospheric and environmental research.
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Developing high-resolution PM2.5 exposure models by integrating low-cost sensors, automated machine learning, and big human mobility data
Introduction:Traditional methods to estimate exposure to PM2.5(particulate matter with less than 2.5 µm in diameter) have typically relied on limited regulatory monitors and do not consider human mobility and travel. However, the limited spatial coverage of regulatory monitors and the lack of consideration of mobility limit the ability to capture actual air pollution exposure. Methods:This study aims to improve traditional exposure assessment methods for PM2.5by incorporating the measurements from a low-cost sensor network (PurpleAir) and regulatory monitors, an automated machine learning modeling framework, and big human mobility data. We develop a monthly-aggregated hourly land use regression (LUR) model based on automated machine learning (AutoML) and assess the model performance across eight metropolitan areas within the US. Results:Our results show that integrating low-cost sensor with regulatory monitor measurements generally improves the AutoML-LUR model accuracy and produces higher spatial variation in PM2.5concentration maps compared to using regulatory monitor measurements alone. Feature importance analysis shows factors highly correlated with PM2.5concentrations, including satellite aerosol optical depth, meteorological variables, vegetation, and land use. In addition, we incorporate human mobility data on exposure estimates regarding where people visit to identify spatiotemporal hotspots of places with higher risks of exposure, emphasizing the need to consider both visitor numbers and PM2.5concentrations when developing exposure reduction strategies. Discussion:This research provides important insights for further public health studies on air pollution by comprehensively assessing the performance of AutoML-LUR models and incorporating human mobility into considering human exposure to air pollution.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1852428
- PAR ID:
- 10541225
- Publisher / Repository:
- Frontiers
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Environmental Science
- Volume:
- 11
- ISSN:
- 2296-665X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2023.1223160
