Air quality index: This map shows where in Germany the air we breathe is harmful to health

Air pollution can cause numerous diseases and physical ailments. But the danger is invisible and only becomes apparent over a long period of time. You can check the quality of the breathing air in your region yourself with an online map.

Many people in Germany take clean breathing air for granted. But there are also areas in our country where the air quality is not perfect – and in some regions of the world the pollution is extremely hazardous to health.

That is why the non-profit project of the
World Air Quality Index
. It is intended to make people around the world aware of how badly the air is polluted in some regions. A large amount of information is collected at 30,000 measuring stations in over 2,000 cities around the world.

This data all feeds into the interactive Air Quality Index map. Here you can check for yourself how good the air is in your area – or in a holiday country that you want to visit.

This is how the card works

Once you have the air quality map open, you can zoom in on any region by holding down the CTRL key and scrolling the mouse wheel.

Alternatively, use the search function below to enter a city name – the web app doesn’t recognize every small town, so try the nearest major city.

You will then see numerous colored labels showing the air quality. The lower the number, the better. This means the colored scale:

Green:
Good air quality, little or no health risk.
Yellow:
Acceptable air quality, health risk for people who are particularly sensitive to air pollution.
Orange:
Unhealthy for certain groups, but not hazardous to the health of the general public.
Red:
Unhealthy air for everyone, sensitive individuals may be at serious risk
Purple:
Very unhealthy air affecting the entire population.
Dark red:
Dangerous air that can cause serious damage to the health of all people.

Heavy load in places

If you look around Germany with the air quality map, most of the signs and dots are colored green or yellow. However, it can sometimes turn red, purple or even dark red, especially in urban and industrial areas.

Hover your mouse over one of the points to see when the data was last updated – this often happens every few minutes. A month progression can also be seen. This impressively shows peaks with high levels of air pollution.

For even more details, click on the point and see the exact location of the measuring station on the map. There is also a forecast for air quality and weather data.

The original of this post “This map shows where in Germany the air we breathe is harmful to health” comes from chip.de.

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