Researchers
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Air pollution, meteorological conditions and COVID-19 incidence
Project Summary
- Overall Research question of my PhD project: What is the influence of environmental stressors on the spread of virus-transmitting infections that can lead to pandemics?
- Sub-question: Which environmental stressors and their combinations have the strongest associations with COVID-19 incidences?
- during the ESA Φ-lab stay:
- further development of the manuscript on the research results of the analysis of the sub-question for the region of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
- Preparation of an extended analysis for the new region of Brazil including various data acquisitions and processing of Earth Observation data
- Broadening my horizons in ML topics and thinking outside the box.
- Various presentations and discussions of my work and the current state.
Development Tools
- R Studio (data preparation)
- Python (new learned, data acquisition + preparation)
- Van Donkelaar database (Satellite-derived PM2.5 | Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group | Washington University in St. Louis (wustl.edu))
- CAMS global land database (ERA5-Land Daily Aggregated - ECMWF Climate Reanalysis | Earth Engine Data Catalog | Google for Developers)
- Power Point (presentations)
Development Outputs
- Brazil dataset of environmental data (combination of air pollution and meteorological factors)
- Dataset matched with Brazil health data [not public available yet, probably available together with the planned publication]
- Data analysis with research question: Which environmental stressors and their combinations have the strongest associations with COVID-19 incidences in Brazil?
Project Description
I had the excellent opportunity to do a three-month research stay at the ESA ESRIN campus in Frascati (Italy). During my stay as a visiting researcher at Φ-lab, I was able to gain extensive knowledge and insights into various topics related to earth observation. Rochelle Schneider, who was my main contact person at Φ-lab, has extensive expertise in earth observation data, health data, and related analysis methods. Her knowledge and expertise make her a valuable discussion partner in answering my research question.