Comparison of data between local towns

Scientific Discourse
1

I was wondering if anyone has looked into how their sensor data compares with other sensors in their area. I have been looking at the PM 2.5 profiles from sensors placed around 30 miles apart and they look quite similar. I can think of only two reasons why this would be the case

  1. Local sources play little part in the PM 2.5 concentration
  2. Weather dominates the profile.
    Has anyone else investigated this?
2

There are not much sensors around here (north italy), but i see some corelation with goverment measurements and there is a difference between rural areas and city’s.

I think it may depends on the location, if there is a lot of industry or if people are heating with wood then the PM 2.5 will likely be higher.

I also observed peeks in PM 2.5 in the winter when citizens started heating with with wood.

As far i know, only humidity is influencing the Nova PM sensor measurements.

3

Further to this below is a plot of the data over seven days in February.

IMG_3504
IMG_35041789×1044 300 KB

1 Like
4

For having used various sensors in two different towns during a couple of years, I can say that the altitude of your measurements has quite a strong influence.
Here in Paris the difference between ground level and 4th floor is more than twofold for instance, for PM2.5 and PM10 measurements…
I encourage filling the ‘altitude’ field as accurately as possible when setting the sensor to publish :wink:

5

Both sensors are close to breathable height i.e approximately the same height above the ground.

6

I should add that I was expecting to see a larger difference in the profiles as they are 30 miles apart.