Scientists Report Finding 39 New Sources Sulfur Dioxide Pollution

A team of Canadian and American researchers have identified 39 new sources of sulfur dioxide pollution, according to a report by the American space agency NASA. All these sources of pollution were previously identified, the report states.

The researchers identified the sources of pollution based on the data gathered by satellites between 2005 and 2014. The previously unreported major sources of sulfur dioxide pollution are in addition to the other natural sources of the gas identified by the research team.

The fossil fuel-generating plants in the Middle East, Russia and Mexico are some of the key sources of toxic sulfur dioxide. The research team used newfangled satellite technology to track these previous unreported pollution sources.

Among the fossil fuel-generating plants in the aforementioned countries possess oil and gas plants, smelters and coal-burning power plants that, in turn, are major sources of sulfur dioxide pollution. According to the researchers, these sources alone account for more than 12 percent of all sulfur dioxide emissions that result out of human activities.

Study lead Chris McLinden, Canadian environment and climate change scientist, said that for the first time, the research team has come up with sources that are independent of any form of precious knowledge. These sources of sulfur dioxide appear as "hot spots" in a satellite picture, which, in turn, make pollution estimates easier.

The study findings represent a "large impact" on the air quality of the regional areas. But what shocked researchers was not just the man-made sources of pollution. There were almost twice as much as natural sources of sulfur dioxide pollution that the research team was able to identify.

These natural sources, 75 in total, are present in the form of non-erupting volcanoes that gradually release the gas. While some of the similar sources are not always unknown, but a majority of these are located in remote parts of the world that aren't really tracked.

The complete details of the study have been published in the journal Nature Geosciences.