I'm a skywatcher but I don't stare up at the sky often. At first I looked up and saw the sky at night, the shining moonlight, to prove what someone had said about the full moon that always reminded him of me which I found insulting considering how rough the surface of the moon is haha =P. Well, no, I just love imagining myself being an astronaut who could travel through the outer space seeing stars at close range and picking them as souvenirs. Every now and then I take my 3-year-old niece to see the moon and the star(s) from the balcony though it's getting harder and harder to see even one tiny little star in Jakarta skies. I had never given a deep look at the skies during the day though, not until my former client questioned about the Jakarta grayish-white sky, "It's very sunny here but why does the sky look a little cloudy? Is it always like that?". It was a simple question but a tricky one as well. It goes without saying that it had a connection with the bad air quality, or, one of the signs that the rain was coming. How often that occurred was a mystery for me and she made me promise to observe the sky more.
The number of motor vehicles increases year in year out affecting not only the traffic but also the air quality. The vehicle emissions contribute most significantly to Jakarta's air pollution. The legendary traffic jam problem making the air quality even worse. One of the obvious results of the air pollution is that the sky looks pale most of the time. It's rare to see a bright blue sky here like today! It was stinking hot, as described in the following weather report:
People preferred being inside their comfortable, air-conditioned rooms to melting in the sun. But hey Jakartans, no matter where you spent your day today, either staying inside or rolling around outside, you will agree with me that you enjoyed it a lot when the fluffy white clouds drifting by in the clear blue sky! It was a beautiful view, wasn't it?! =)
I wish we had this sky color everyday. I don't think it's late to reduce the heavily polluted air and get this pleasant view by start doing little things to contribute to a better and healthier environment, say, walking, using bicycle, taking bus, and growing plants. The local government should open more green spaces (look how few and far between the public parks are!) and improve the poor public transportation and its infrastructure to lure more people to opt for it. Creating bike lanes all over the city should be considered too. I believe there are a lot of people outside who want to be healthier by using their bikes on a daily basis, but with the current traffic condition in Jakarta, they could die anytime on the road. The long and the short of it, there are many options to cut the amount of pollution released into the air and make Jakarta a city worth living in.
The number of motor vehicles increases year in year out affecting not only the traffic but also the air quality. The vehicle emissions contribute most significantly to Jakarta's air pollution. The legendary traffic jam problem making the air quality even worse. One of the obvious results of the air pollution is that the sky looks pale most of the time. It's rare to see a bright blue sky here like today! It was stinking hot, as described in the following weather report:
People preferred being inside their comfortable, air-conditioned rooms to melting in the sun. But hey Jakartans, no matter where you spent your day today, either staying inside or rolling around outside, you will agree with me that you enjoyed it a lot when the fluffy white clouds drifting by in the clear blue sky! It was a beautiful view, wasn't it?! =)
I wish we had this sky color everyday. I don't think it's late to reduce the heavily polluted air and get this pleasant view by start doing little things to contribute to a better and healthier environment, say, walking, using bicycle, taking bus, and growing plants. The local government should open more green spaces (look how few and far between the public parks are!) and improve the poor public transportation and its infrastructure to lure more people to opt for it. Creating bike lanes all over the city should be considered too. I believe there are a lot of people outside who want to be healthier by using their bikes on a daily basis, but with the current traffic condition in Jakarta, they could die anytime on the road. The long and the short of it, there are many options to cut the amount of pollution released into the air and make Jakarta a city worth living in.
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