NASA Satellite Captures Massive Wastewater Flow off California Coast

In 2022, the NASA jet propulsion laboratory launched a satellite sensor to map minerals in the dusty and arid regions of the earth. But that’s not all that is useful – in a new study, scientists have used the spectroscopic tool to study massive quantities of wastewater flowing in the sea off the coast of southern California.

Each year, millions of untreated and treated wastewater gallons are poured without ceremony in the Tijuana river, carrying pollution through communities on both sides of the American-Mexican border before reaching the ocean. In a study published in the journal Total environmental scienceResearchers used Investigation of the source of mineral dust on the surface of the earth (Emitted), a hyperspectral imaging instrument aboard the International Space Station, to examine this plume of nauseous waste at the Tijuana River Delta.

Pollution of wastewater is not pretty. It can bring toxic chemicals, harmful algae proliferations and hostile bacteria, which can have an impact on the health of beach lovers.

People generally count on water quality dashboards to tell them when it is dangerous to swim, but these often rest on samples of land, which do not always cover the whole extent of pollution. The collection of these samples also takes time and money, especially in highly contaminated areas.

This is where Put forward come. He uses imaging spectroscopyA technique that captures both spatial and spectral information by measuring sunlight reflected by the surface of the earth. Each image can capture hundreds of wavelengths by pixel, giving scientists detailed information on molecular composition and the properties of materials of what is on the ground.

This allowed researchers to measure the spectral signature of the panache of wastewater. The researchers compared the hyperspectral satellite images taken by emitting with the spectra of untreated wastewater, diluted wastewater and sampled sea water near the plume. They also compared Emit images with readings of a floor spectrometer. They found that water with high water contamination emits a separate red spectral characteristic which could allow researchers to monitor the extent of pollution in the future – although the source of this characteristic is not yet clear.

The researchers hope that the data will be able to complete the efforts to sample the water quality near the mouth of the river by telling scientists of the water where sample.

“From the orbit, you can look at the bottom and see that a plume of wastewater extends in places that you have not sampled,” said the study co-author, a JPL scientist in southern California, in a statement. “It’s like a diagnosis at the doctor’s office who says to you:” Hey, let’s take a closer look at this. “”

Emitting has also been useful for detect emissions methane and carbon dioxide from gas leaks, forest health assessment and Estimate of the snowy mantle Merger rate.

Now Emit has yet another job. “The fact that the conclusions of Emit on the coast are consistent with the measures on the ground is convincing for water scientists,” said Eva Scrivner, doctoral student at the University of Connecticut and the principal of the study, in a press release. “It’s really exciting.”