The Weather Company Collaborates with PurpleAir to Provide Community Air Quality Data Across its Consumer Properties

SAN FRANCISCO, July 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Weather Company, an IBM Business (NYSE: IBM) announced today a collaboration with air quality sensor manufacturer PurpleAir to expand the availability of hyperlocal air quality and pollution data for the general public. As a result of this agreement, owners of PurpleAir devices now have the ability to contribute data from their units to Weather Underground, a consumer division of The Weather Company, which will display sensor readings and maps on its website to provide one of the most granular pictures available of air pollution within the United States.

According to the World Health Organization, exposure to outdoor air pollution has been linked to roughly three million deaths a year worldwide. Because air pollution is not an immediate, high-profile disaster like a tornado or hurricane, many people don't realize its effects.

As federal funding for environmental monitoring and reporting diminishes, individuals and organizations are looking to the private sector to provide accurate, reliable air quality data. As part of its dedication to climate science, Weather Underground is expanding its environmental sensor network to help fill in those data gaps. With over 250,000 personal weather stations across the world, Weather Underground is able to provide millions of people with real-time weather data. In an effort to provide the public with localized air quality information, Weather Underground will add PurpleAir sensors to its network and offer the data on its website, wunderground.com.

"We're incredibly excited to work with PurpleAir to provide the public with free access to reliable air quality data," said Kourosh Karimkhany, head of Weather Underground. "Knowing the level of air quality in their city or neighborhood enables people to make more informed decisions about daily activities that may directly impact their health and well-being."

Through this alliance with PurpleAir, millions will gain access to local air pollution data within cities and neighborhoods via the Weather Underground website. Individuals interested in contributing air quality data via a PurpleAir sensor can join the Weather Underground network here.

The Weather Company, an IBM Business
The Weather Company helps people take action in the face of weather. As part of IBM's Watson Content & IoT Platform, it powers new possibilities of decision making, informed by billions of data inputs and enabled by leading cognitive technology. The company offers personalized insights and the most accurate forecasts globally to millions of consumers and thousands of marketers and businesses through its business solutions division and its own digital products from The Weather Channel and Weather Underground.

The company delivers around 25 billion forecasts daily. Its products include the world's most downloaded weather app, a network of 250,000 personal weather stations, a top-20 U.S. website, one of the world's largest IoT data platforms, and industry-leading business solutions. Weather Means Business™ -- the world's biggest brands in aviation, energy, insurance, media and government rely on The Weather Company for data, technology platforms and services to help improve decision-making and respond to weather's impact on business. For more, visit theweathercompany.com.

About PurpleAir
PurpleAir is an air quality monitoring network built on a new generation of laser particle counters and the Internet of Things. We produce affordable, validated and easy to use air sensors to enable the citizen scientist to take part in collecting air quality data. For additional information, visit www.purpleair.com or email [email protected].

SOURCE The Weather Company, an IBM Business

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http://www.theweathercompany.com