This year has been a record one.

It is not a record for good, it is a record for life. Better to say, it is a record that leads to the end of ourselves. With this being said, there are ways like being energy efficient within the home, driving less, eating organic produce, or checking out Xoom Energy plans (to find an affordable energy provider), for example, that can help in contributing less to global warming. It’ll only get worse if nothing is done.

Round the world scientists alert about global warming. NASA states that the year 2016 has an average temperature increase of 1,35 degrees Celsius over the last 100 years average.

That is a serious issue!

The Arctic is melting.

Global warming is mainly (in our minds) related with greenhouse gas emissions, but it is important to know that 1/4 of the warming is related to black carbon (hollin in spanish), and that is why, Skypolaris is flying.

The University of Granada is leading a worldwide study of the black carbon emissions over remote regions, to help with carbon reporting in that region. ACCIONA is leading the sponsorship of the project because they care about those emissions and try to provide a clean energy system to fight those black carbon emissions. These black carbon emissions could come from a number of places, such as from factories or gas and diesel engines. This means that some vehicles could be adding to the existing levels of black carbon emissions. If an individual has recently been on a long drive, they could’ve released numerous amounts of carbon, damaging the planet. To try and make this right, those people could buy carbon offsets from a company like Cool Effect to help them reduce carbon emissions over the world. That should help the environment.

Carrying very sensitive equipment like the Aethalometer (and some black carbon inside my head that drives me crazy), allows retrieving very important data that is being analyzed and will be provided to the worldwide scientific community, for them to mind their governments.

Skypolaris is not only retrieving data over remote regions. We also study some very special areas where data is not available. That is the only reason that I find myself at Medellin (Colombia).

Medellin is a city located in a long valley, in between two Andes mountain ranges. Capital of Antioquia, and the second largest city of Colombia, some 2,4 million inhabitants are leaving under high levels of black carbon.

I can tell you that those days here, I feel it !

The State University of Medellin, has a LIDAR system and other equipments but they don´t have an aethalometer, the equipment used to study back carbon.

Not a single measurement has been taken so far in this city, and Skypolaris will do it !!!

Not only we will give that first data, but we hope that the data will be very important for the University to be provided with such an important equipment.

Today I will have a meeting at the University, with Doctor Alvaro Bastidas. One of the goals is to visit Medellin Airport Air Traffic Controllers. As stated, Medellin is inside a valley. I would need to take off from Rio Negro international airport, cross a small mountain range and go down over Medellin, and in between its big national airport.

That needs coordination and help. We all hope that they realise how important the data retrieving is important and they cooperate.

Problem is that the visibility is quite reduced by smog, so it doesn´t help.

Keeping our fingers crossed !