authority: gcos
slug: air-quality-pm25
name: Air Quality (PM2.5)
domain: atmosphere
subdomain: composition
authority_id: gcos:aerosols
external_ids:
  nvs_uri: null
  cf_standard_name: mass_concentration_of_pm2p5_ambient_aerosol_in_air
  iadopt_concepts:
    property: mass-concentration
    entity: pm2p5-aerosol
canonical_units: "kg m-3"
gcos_requirement_tier:
  threshold: null
  breakthrough: null
  goal: null
description: |
  Surface-level mass concentration of particulate matter with diameter
  ≤ 2.5 micrometers. Drives health impacts from wildfire smoke, industrial
  emissions, and secondary aerosol formation. Operationally forecast by
  NOAA HRRR-Smoke (MASSDEN at 8 m AGL) and observed by EPA AirNow / PurpleAir.
theme: atmosphere
demos: []
status: documented
sources:
  - https://www.epa.gov/pm-pollution/particulate-matter-pm-basics
  - https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/