PHYSICS CLASS AIRS OUT 
A DIRTY PROJECT

 

January 2001 -  Fred M. Loxsom, physics professor at Trinity University, will lead students this spring in a project to measure and describe air pollution. To conduct their research, they will install instruments on top of a science building at the University’s San Antonio campus and travel to Mexico City to perform similar experiments.  Mexico City is an ideal site for analyzing photochemical smog, Professor Loxsom says, because it has what he calls “the most polluted air in the world.” Mountains that ring the capital city of Mexico trap pollutants emitted by thousands of automobiles and industries there, he explains. He plans to draw upon research conducted in cooperation with officials from Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico in the spring of 2000 and return there during the 2001 Spring Break to continue his work. In designing equipment to measure ozone layers, students are prepared to factor in the effects of heat and wind, Professor Loxsom says. “Thus, the students will be able to describe air pollution, not predict it,” he adds.  For more information about Professor Loxsom’s research, contact Susie P. Gonzalez at (210) 999-8406 or e-mail Susie.Gonzalez@Trinity.edu.

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Last updated on January 10, 2000 by the Office of Public Relations