Air Quality in Moscow during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Comparison with Other Regions of the World.

An analysis of the changes in the carbon monoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PM10) mass concentrations in the atmosphere near highways and residential areas over Moscow during the spring lockdown in 2020 against of the mass concentrations in the previous years (2015–2019) is presented. In the lockdown period, a decrease in the CO mass concentrations was about 40% near highways and only 10% in residential areas. A decrease in the PM10 mass concentrations by about 10% was found during that period. The closeness of lockdown effects in Moscow and other megacities is shown by the comparison of trends in the traffic intensity and pollutant mass concentrations. The special importance of motor vehicles as a source of carbon monoxide emissions in the analyzed megacities is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]