Vog

About: Vog is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 30 publications have been published within this topic receiving 350 citations.

Observing and Forecasting Vog Dispersion from Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii

Abstract: Emissions from Kīlauea volcano, known locally as “vog” for volcanic smog, pose significant environmental and health risks to the Hawaiian community. The Vog Measurement and Prediction (VMAP) project was conceived to help mitigate the negative impacts of Kīlauea’s emissions. To date, the VMAP project has achieved the following milestones: i) created a custom application of the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model (HYSPLIT, hereafter Vog model) to produce statewide forecasts of the concentration and dispersion of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and sulfate aerosol from Kīlauea volcano; ii) developed an ultraviolet (UV) spectrometer array to provide near-real-time volcanic gas emission rate measurements for use as input into the Vog model; iii) developed and deployed a stationary array of ambient SO2 and meteorological sensors to record the spatial characteristics of Kīlauea’s gas plume in high temporal and spatial resolution for model verification; and iv) developed web-based tools to ...

Adverse Health Effects Associated with Increased Activity at Kīlauea Volcano: A Repeated Population-Based Survey

Abstract: Eruptive activity at the Kīlauea volcano (Hawai`i, USA) has increased since 2008 resulting in volcanic air pollution (vog) at levels exceeding the national air quality standard for sulfur dioxide. Previous investigations during lower vog levels found adverse cardiorespiratory effects in the residents. The purpose of this 2012 survey was to reassess and compare the impact of the increased volcanic activity on population health. Prevalence of cardiorespiratory signs, symptoms, and diseases was estimated in vog exposed and unexposed communities, and descriptions of perceived health and environmental effects were collected door-to-door. Vog exposure was significantly associated with increased odds of self-reported cough, phlegm, rhinorrhea, sore/dry throat, shortness of breath, sinus congestion, continual wheezing, eye and skin irritation, and diagnosed hypertension. Field measurements identified significantly higher average systolic and diastolic blood pressures () and lower blood oxygen saturation (). Half of the participants perceived that Kīlauea’s intensified eruption had negatively affected their health with reports of financial impacts from degradation of agriculture and livestock. Relatively stronger magnitudes of health effects were associated with the higher exposure to vog. Public concerns remain about attributed effects of the ongoing eruption. Enhanced public health efforts are recommended at Kīlauea and other degassing volcanoes worldwide.

Mobile eye tracking as a basis for real-time control of a gaze driven head-mounted video camera

Abstract: Eye trackers based on video-oculographic (VOG) methods are a convenient means for oculomotor research. This work focused on the development of a VOG device that allows mobile eye tracking. It was especially designed to support a head-mounted gaze driven camera system presented in a companion paper [Wagner et al. 2006] (see Figure 1). The target applications of such a device can be seen in surgery, medical and behavioral sciences as well as in the documentation and teaching of manual tasks. One major aim was the design of a lightweight head mount at low costs. Since the actuators of the gaze camera require close-to-real-time control, the software was implemented on standard PC-hardware by using well-known VOG algorithms that were optimized for short latencies.