Air Pollution Exposure Based on Nighttime Light Remote Sensing and Multi-source Geographic Data in Beijing

Air pollution is a problem that directly affects human health,the global environment and the climate.The air quality index(AQI)indicates the degree of air pollution and effect on human health;however,when assessing air pollution only based on AQI monitoring data the fact that the same degree of air pollution is more harmful in more densely populated areas is ignored.In the present study,multi-source data were combined to map the distribution of the AQI and population data,and the analyze their pollution population exposure of Beijing in 2018 was analyzed.Machine learning based on the random forest algorithm was adopted to calculate the monthly average AQI of Beijing in 2018.Using Luojia-1 nighttime light remote sensing data,population statistics data,the population of Beijing in 2018 and point of interest data,the distribution of the permanent population in Beijing was estimated with a high precision of 200 m×200 m.Based on the spatialization results of the AQI and population of Beijing,the air pollution exposure levels in various parts of Beijing were calculated using the population-weighted pollution exposure level(PWEL)formula.The results show that the southern region of Beijing had a more serious level of air pollution,while the northern region was less polluted.At the same time,the population was found to agglomerate mainly in the central city and the peripheric areas thereof.In the present study,the exposure of different districts and towns in Beijing to pollution was analyzed,based on high resolution population spatialization data,it could take the pollution exposure issue down to each individual town.And we found that towns with higher exposure such as Yongshun Town,Shahe Town and Liyuan Town were all found to have a population of over 200000 which was much higher than the median population of townships of51741 in Beijing.Additionally,the change trend of air pollution exposure levels in various regions of Beijing in 2018 was almost the same,with the peak value being in winter and the lowest value being in summer.The exposure intensity in population clusters was relatively high.To reduce the level and intensity of pollution exposure,relevant departments should strengthen the governance of areas with high AQI,and pay particular attention to population clusters.

Spatiotemporal Evolution of West Africa's Urban Landscape Characteristics Applying Harmonized DMSP-OLS and NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Light(NTL)Data

Investigating urban expansion patterns aids in the management of urbanization and in ameliorating the socioeconomic and environmental issues associated with economic transformation and sustainable development.Applying Harmonized Defense Meteorological Satellite Program-Operational Line-scan System(DMSP-OLS)and the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership-Visible Infrared Imagery Radiometer Suite(NPP-VIIRS)Nighttime Light(NTL)data,this paper investigated the characteristics of urban landscape in West Africa.Using the harmonized NTL data,spatial comparison and empirical threshold methods were employed to detect urban changes from 1993 to 2018.We examined the rate of urban change and calculated the direction of the urban expansion of West Africa using the center-of-gravity method for urban areas.In addition,we used the landscape expansion index method to assess the processes and stages of urban growth in West Africa.The accuracy of urban area extraction based on NTL data were R^(2)=0.8314 in 2000,R^(2)=0.8809 in 2006,R^(2)=0.9051 in 2012 for the DMSP-OLS and the simulated NPP-VIIRS was R^(2)=0.8426 in 2018,by using Google Earth images as validation.The results indicated that there was a high rate and acceleration of urban landscapes in West Africa,with rates of 0.0160,0.0173,0.0189,and 0.0686,and accelerations of 0.31,0.42,0.54,and 0.90 for the periods of 1998–2003,2003–2008,2008–2013,and 2013–2018,respectively.The expansion direction of urban agglomeration in West Africa during 1993–2018 was mainly from the coast to inland.However,cities located in the Sahel Region of Africa and in the middle zone expanded from north to south.Finally,the results showed that the urban landscape of West Africa was mainly in a scattered and disordered’diffusion’process,whereas only a few cities located in coastal areas experiencing the process of’coalescence’according to urban growth phase theory.This study provides urban planners with relevant insights for the urban expansion characteristics of West Africa.

Differentiated effects of morphological and functional polycentricurban spatial structure on carbon emissions in China: an empiricalanalysis from remotely sensed nighttime light approach

Understanding the relationship between urban development and environmental sustainability to achieve‘double carbon’goals in China can be strengthened by evaluating the environmental effect of urban spatial structure(US).However,there have been few studies that consider the differentiated effects of polycentric US(PUS)on carbon emissions from both functional and morphological perspectives simultaneously.Thus,taking China’s 31 provinces as experimental subjects,our study developed a novel framework with remotely sensed nighttime light(NTL)data to quantify morphological PUS(MPUS)and functional PUS(FPUS)from 2000 to 2019.Then,from these two dimensions,differentiated effects of PUS on carbon emissions were further examined.Results indicated that NTL data presented high potential in quantifying MPUS and FPUS.The effect of FPUS on carbon emission-cutting outperformed that of MPUS.In addition,the spillover effect effectively enhanced the decreasing effect of the FPUS on carbon emissions.Our empiricalfindings can provide guidance for the government in developing strategies for reducing carbon emissions and optimizing USs.

From earth observation to human observation:Geocomputation for social science

It is possible to obtain vast amounts of spatiotemporal data related to human activities to support the study of human behavior and social evolution.In this context,geography,with the human-nature relationship as its core,is undergoing a transition from strictly earth observations to the observation of human activities.Geocomputation for social science is one manifestation thereof.Geocomputation for social science is an interdisciplinary approach combining remote sensing techniques,social science,and big data computation.Driven by the availability of spatially and temporally expansive big data,geocomputation for social science uses spatiotemporal statistical analyses to detect and analyze the interactions between human behavior,the natural environment,and social activities;Remote sensing(RS)observations are used as primary data.Geocomputation for social science can be used to investigate major social issues and to assess the impact of major natural and societal events,and will surely be an area of focused development in geography in the near future.We briefly review the background of geocomputation in the social sciences,discuss its definition and disciplinary characteristics,and highlight the main research foci.Several key technologies and applications are also illustrated with relevant case studies of the Syrian Civil War,typhoon transits,and traffic patterns.