Creating a Data Transmission and Visualization Platform for a Low-cost Sensor Used in Community-engaged Air Pollution Monitoring

UC Berkeley Climate/Computer Science/ Mathematics, 2024–25

Liaison(s): Chelsea Preble, Tom Kirchstetter
Advisor(s): Ben Wiedermann
Students(s): Ashley Song (TL-F), Nithya Yeluri (TL-S), Laney Goldman, Cole Lameyer, Subi Lumala, Anjeli Mayoraz

Communities heavily affected by air pollution levels often lack access to costly air quality monitoring. Berkeley is developing a network of low-cost aerosol black carbon detectors (ABCDs) to measure locally emitted pollution levels. The Clinic team built a website that stores and reports ABCD data through an interactive map, enabling the Berkeley team to conduct their community-engaged research effectively. (Note: This project was jointly completed with an engineering project that adapted the ABCDs to send data over modern networks).