Over half of the world’s population lives in urban areas. These regions are hotspots of gaseous and particulate pollutants that have immediate effects on air quality and human health and long term effects on atmospheric composition and climate. We focus on quantifying the mostly anthropogenic emissions of trace gases such as nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and glyoxal, then leverage those measurements to understand the role of trace gases in the formation of smog components such as O3 and secondary organic aerosol (SOA). The CALNEX, CARES and TCAP field campaigns are urban pollution projects, while the latter was specifically dedicated to aerosol measurements.
