Distillations | Science History Institute Fighting Smog in Los Angeles
Jun 26, 2018
Chip Jacobs, historian and co-author of Smogtown, gives a concise bio as a scholar of Los Angeles pollution history. He traces the 1943 smog crisis, scientific breakthroughs that linked cars to smog, mobile air sampling and public outrage, and the rise of catalytic converters and laws that changed national policy.
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LA's Geography Turned Pollution Into A Killer Lid
- Los Angeles geography and temperature inversions trap pollution in a basin, concentrating smog.
- Chip Jacobs describes the 1943 smog attack where mountains and warm lids prevented dispersion and caused eye and respiratory irritation.
Pineapple Chemist Condensed Smog Into A Brown Goo
- Arnold Beckman hired Dutch pineapple chemist Ari Hagen‑Smit to analyze smog because he knew how to extract and study fumes.
- Hagen‑Smit condensed smog into a brown goo and identified peroxy materials implicating partially burned hydrocarbons.
Winnebago Labs Mapped Smog Sources In Motion
- Mobile labs in vans and RVs let scientists map pollution sources across Southern California.
- Beckman and Hagen‑Smit drove sampling rigs to highways, refineries, and backyards to link hydrocarbons to cars, incinerators, and uncovered gasoline tanks.
