science in ACTION
INNOVATIVE RESEARCH FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

CITYSPACE AIR SENSOR NETWORK PROJECT CONDUCTED TO TEST
NEW MONITORING CAPABILITIES
What is the CitySpace project?
The CitySpace project is a new
research effort by EPA to field test
new, lower-cost air pollution sensors
in a mid-sized city. The goal of this
project is to understand how this
emerging technology can add
valuable information on air pollution
patterns in neighborhoods.
When and where will the field
study occur?
For the study, researchers plan to
build approximately 20 sensor
devices for deployment in the
Memphis, Tenn. area. Each node
will include a particulate matter (PM)
sensor as well as several
meteorological sensors that measure
temperature, humidity, and wind. The
data recordings will occur each
minute and be wirelessly transmitted
using cellular communication to an
EPA server.
Starting in fall 2016, the sensors will
be located throughout Memphis to
capture local-air pollution patterns.
The locations are being selected
using input from community
members and predicted air pollution
patterns and by comparing some
sensors with data from existing air
monitors used in regulation. EPA will
also coordinate with the local county
and state organizations. In addition,
EPA web tools that can create useful
maps of existing data, including C-
FERST, C-LINE, and EnviroAtlas,
will be used to explore potential
sensor locations.
Once located, the sensors will
remain in place for approximately six
months to collect an extensive
amount of data. The project is
anticipated to produce up to 30
million data values for analysis of
local-scale air pollution and weather
patterns.
The study results will be summarized
to provide the Memphis community
and scientific community a greater
understanding of local air pollutant
spatial patterns.
Why do we need outdoor air
monitoring in more locations?
Measuring air quality is an important
step toward ensuring public health
and welfare. In addition to regulatory
monitoring networks, researchers
also conduct air pollution monitoring
to explore local patterns in air
pollution. For example, many
researchers have conducted
extensive monitoring to look at local
changes in air pollution levels near
sources (e.g., highways, rail yards),
sometimes with just a few hundred
feet of distance from one monitoring
location to another. Research studies
are exploring how new technologies
can be used to understand how air
pollution varies at a small geographic
scale in an urban or suburban
setting.
How can I learn more?
The team will reach out to the local
community in the Memphis area to
guide the selection of sensor
(locations and will provide several
presentations throughout the course
of the project.
CONTACT:
Ryan Brown
EPA Region 4 Office,
404-562-9147, brown.rvan@epa.gov
Daniel Garver
EPA Region 4 Office,
404-562-9839, garver.daniel@eaa.gov
Ron Williams
EPA's Office of Research and
Development
919-541-2957, Williams.ronald@epa.gov
1
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development

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