Visibility Monitoring & Digital Imaging Services

Webcam, Light Extinction, Light Scattering Monitoring & More

The EPA Regional Haze Rule identifies visibility in Class I Areas as a protected resource. To that end, Federal Land Managers have targeted visibility as a key component of their air quality monitoring strategies.

Air Resource Specialists has been at the forefront of visibility research since the company’s inception. We work with optical measurement manufacturers to improve open-air nephelometer and transmissometer designs and operate large state- and nation-wide visibility networks, often in conjunction with long-term IMPROVE (Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments) program speciated aerosol monitoring sites.

ARS developed WinHaze, an online Monte Carlo atmospheric radiative transport model that simulates visual air quality for real world scenes; the current model includes 144 national park, wilderness and urban scenes. ARS also integrates webcams and sky quality meters into educational websites to document scenic vistas, nighttime light pollution, and provide invaluable visual and empirical data for researchers.