Inspired by Ed Hawkins’ climate stripes, the new air quality stripes show air pollution from 1850 to today. Each year is a separate vertical bar that is coloured according to the amount of particle pollution. Air that meets World Health Organization guidelines is coded as sky blue. Shades of yellows, browns and black represent higher pollution in a colour scheme that reflects more than 200 images of smog from around the world.
Dr Kirsty Pringle, of the University of Edinburgh, who co-directed the project, said: “Air pollution is often called the invisible killer but these images make the invisible visible, showing the changes over the decades.”
The website allows you to generate your own air pollution stripes for large cities.
