Air Quality Week

Severe Thunderstorms and Possible Flooding in the East; Extreme Heat in the West.

Scattered severe storms with wind damage, large hail, and a few tornadoes will be possible this afternoon and evening across much of the Mid Atlantic and Southeast. Heavy rain may cause instances of flash flooding from eastern Kentucky to southern New York. Out west, dangerous heat will develop through Saturday, with record-breaking temperatures expected. Read More >

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC 840 AM EDT MON APR 28 2014 ...THIS IS AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK... THIS WEEK MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE OZONE SEASON FOR MANY AREAS IN THE UNITED STATES. EACH DAY OF AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK WILL FEATURE A UNIQUE TOPIC RELEVANT TO EDUCATION AND PREPAREDNESS. TODAY WE HIGHLIGHT TWO TYPES OF AIR POLLUTION: OZONE AND PARTICLE POLLUTION. THESE ARE TWO COMMON POLLUTANTS FOUND IN MANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY. OZONE IS A COLORLESS ODORLESS GAS. IT IS THE SAME GAS THAT IS FOUND IN THE OZONE LAYER, HIGH IN THE EARTHS STRATOSPHERE, WHERE IT PROTECTS US FROM THE SUNS ULTRAVIOLET ENERGY. BUT AT GROUND LEVEL WHERE WE LIVE, OZONE POLLUTION IS UNHEALTHY TO BREATHE. PARTICLE POLLUTION, OR AIRBORNE PARTICLE POLLUTION, CONSISTS OF MICROSCOPIC PARTICLES IN THE AIR. DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU LIVE, IT CAN BE A PROBLEM IN THE WINTER AND/OR SUMMER. LIKE OZONE, PARTICLE POLLUTION IS NOT HEALTHY TO BREATHE. THE PARTICLES ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO HAZE WHICH BLURS THE VIEW IN MANY CITIES AND NATIONAL PARKS. TOMORROW WE WILL LEARN HOW THESE POLLUTANTS FORM AND CREATE POOR AIR QUALITY CONDITIONS. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK...VISIT US ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT HTTP://WWW.AIRQUALITY.NOAA.GOV