Breathe in a Lungful of Strange: Top 10 Crazy Weird Facts About Air Pollution

Air pollution is yucky. We all know it; we all get it.

But do you really know that much about it? For instance, can you name how many people are affected or explain how it started an aerial coup on The Sistine Chapel?

If not, you’re about to find out. Here we cover 10 incredible facts about air pollution.

Suck in a lungful of (hopefully) fresh air. You’re going to want to hang onto it because it might not be there much longer.

10 Crazy Weird Facts About Air Pollution

From the depressing to the hopeful to the all-out strange, little-known facts about air pollution populate the atmosphere and Earth.

1. The Great Smog of London Killed up to 12,000 People

London is known for its misty atmosphere, but when fog combines with smoke you get what London is even more well known for: smog.

In December of 1952, London experienced a chilling cold. Citizens went about their business; factories continued to run.

It didn’t take long before the foggy chill outside turned a nasty shade of yellowish-brown.

Above London, changes in weather pressure had resulted in a temperature inversion. Cold, stagnant air was trapped beneath a layer of warmer air. Without any wind to move the colder layer along, the particles expelled by citizens warming themselves, automobiles chugging along and smokestacks spurting out particles caused a thick smog to descend upon London.

The 30-mile-wide air mass caused deaths from pneumonia and bronchitis to multiply sevenfold. London’s East End’s mortality rate multiplied by nine.

Even a few years after the five-day event, London continued to run out of coffins. Experts estimate the Great Smog killed 8,000 to 12,000 people.

2. You Probably Live in an Area With Unsafe Air Pollution

If you think you’re safe from air pollution, you might want to run to the store for a face mask. The World Health Organization estimates 92% of the global population lives in an area where air pollution exceeds limits considered safe.

Yearly, approximately 3 million deaths worldwide are linked to air pollution. Dangerous levels are particularly prominent in poverty-stricken countries. According to the WHO’s report, Turkmenistan has the highest death rate connected to air pollution.

3. Air Pollutants May Be More Harmful Than Water Pollutants

In a contest between air pollutants and water pollutants, some experts say air pollution “wins” out. Air pollution cannot be avoided, making it more hazardous to human health.

In the future, it will be the biggest cause of worldwide mortalities, overtaking the dirty water’s impacts. Even though 40% of the population is expected to live in areas with severe water stress in 2050, air pollution will be the largest cause of premature death by that time.

4. It Ages You

If you live in the city, you might start to age prematurely.

New studies indicate city residents age 10 years faster than those enjoying the country life. Exposure to a city’s high levels of air pollution has profound impacts on the skin, affecting everything from elasticity to wrinkles.

5. It’s Nicknamed the “Tobacco of the 21st Century”

We’ve given you the numbers, and experts are now comparing air pollution to 21st-century tobacco because it kills almost as many people as cigarettes.

The WHO estimates tobacco results indirectly and directly in over 7 million deaths worldwide each year. Air pollution results in over 5 million.

6. Particles Cause the Red in Sunsets

Ah, the beautiful sunset. With its bright orange hues.

Except many sunsets (especially for city folk) aren’t quite that nice golden yellow or orange. They’re more of a ruby red.

The sky’s colors result from sunlight interacting with airborne particles in what is known as Raleigh scattering. When the sun sets, all the blue colors scatter, leaving the warm oranges and yellows behind and, perhaps, a reddish tint.

But a blood-red sky is usually not the result of nature. Instead, it’s a consequence of aerosols.

Especially in cities, human-caused aerosols are abundant, outweighing the natural aerosols caused by events like forest fires or volcanic explosions. These particles are what create the deep red of sunsets around the world.

Maybe those types aren’t so pretty, after all.

7. Car Companies Are Cheating Emission Tests

You may have heard about it in the news, but several car companies have been busted.

The exhaust from diesel engines releases carcinogens into the air. Almost all surpass emission levels outside of the laboratory. Consequently, many car manufacturers are scrambling to hide the levels and sell their automobiles.

Volkswagon, Fiat Chrysler, GM, and Renault are just a few that are getting the stink eye from the government lately.

8. Too Many People Breathed on the Sistine Chapel

Each year, about 4.5 million tourists trod through the Sistine Chapel to take in the beautiful sights. Unfortunately, the pollution that those individuals released (dust, hair molecules, carbon dioxide) started to damage the paintings on its walls and ceilings.

Professionals had to work at night to repair the damage, as the number of visitors during the day provided a huge cleaning hurdle.

9. A Vacuum Cleaner Could Save Us

Well, sort of.

Taking air filters to the next step, one individual decided to help out the outdoors by using a contraption similar to an air filter and vacuum cleaner. Dutch artist Daan Roosegarde created a giant smog vacuum cleaner and planted it in China to help reduce the amount of smog. The 23-foot contraption worked.

It can capture 70% of PM10 particles in the air, and studies have shown it reduces PM10 pollution by 45% within 20 meters of the very tall vacuum.

And what does Roosegarde do with the waste that’s collected? He sells it in jewelry as a reminder of pollution’s danger.

10. The Solomon Islands Have the Cleanest Air on Earth

A 2017 study by WHO found that the cleanest air in the world could be breathed at the Solomon Islands. It has a rating of 5.0, shortly followed by New Zealand, New Brunei Darussalam, and Australia.

The report indicates the area has the lowest urban concentrations of air pollution around the globe.

Breathe in a Lungful of Weird

If you’re ready to hop on the Earth-saving train, understanding the facts about air pollution is one way to do it. Maybe you could create the next big vacuum or hightail it to the Solomon Islands.

Or maybe you could try using hemp products.

Seriously. Check out our 13 weird and awesome products made from hemp and consider purchasing eco-friendly.

The Earth needs us.

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