Name That Pollutant
This colorless, odorless gas is produced when fuels don’t burn completely — and it can silently poison you.
What is carbon monoxide?
This natural source of air pollution can send ash and sulfur dioxide high into the atmosphere.
What is a volcano?
Planting these helps clean the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.
What are trees?
These falling water droplets help remove pollutants from the atmosphere as they descend.
What is rain?
This gas makes up about 21% of the air we breathe and is essential for respiration.
What is oxygen?
This gas protects us high in the atmosphere, but near the ground, it’s a harmful pollutant that irritates lungs and eyes.
What is ozone?
Often started by lightning, this type of disaster releases carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and black carbon into the air.
What is a wildfire?
This device on a car’s exhaust system converts toxic gases like carbon monoxide into less harmful ones.
What is a catalytic converter?
During this weather phenomenon, a layer of warm air traps cold air (and pollution) below it near the ground.
What is a temperature inversion?
Nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide can combine with water to form this type of precipitation.
What is acid rain?
This reddish-brown gas can form during gasoline combustion — a major ingredient in smog.
What is nitrogen dioxide?
Sulfur dioxide, a major component of acid rain, is given off whenever this fossil fuel is burned.
What is coal?
The U.S. law first passed in 1970 that limits how much pollution can be released into the air.
What is the Clean Air Act?
This white or gray blanket of water droplets or ice crystals can trap pollutants close to the ground in cities.
What is fog?
A trace gas, this colorless, odorless gas is released by burning fossil fuels and contributes to global warming.
What is carbon dioxide?
These tiny particles in the air — abbreviated as PM — can lodge deep in your lungs and even enter your bloodstream.
What is particulate matter?
Ozone is produced when this gas reacts with sunlight.
What is nitrogen dioxide?
These tall devices on factory smokestacks use water droplets to trap sulfur dioxide and ash before they leave the chimney.
What are scrubbers?
This atmospheric layer protects life on Earth by absorbing most of the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation.
What is the stratosphere (ozone layer)?
This naturally occurring greenhouse gas is released by wetlands, livestock, and decomposing organic matter, and traps heat in the atmosphere.
What is methane?
These carbon-based chemicals easily evaporate into the air and help form smog; paint and gasoline often release them.
What are volatile organic compounds (VOC's)?
In cities, sunlight, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds combine to create this secondary form of air pollution.
What is a smog?
By combining gasoline and electricity, these cars reduce emissions and improve fuel efficiency.
What are hybrid vehicles?
This type of air pollution is enhanced in urban areas during heat waves when stagnant air traps emissions.
What is ozone?
These human-made compounds containing chlorine, fluorine, and carbon, once common in refrigerants and aerosol sprays, can deplete the ozone layer.
What are CFC's?