Beijing's Pollution Levels: The Worst in the Solar System?

Have you considered leaving Beijing as a result of this year's frequently terrible pollution? Researchers at the Environmental Petroleum Institute at Kuanghua University have recently uncovered shocking new evidence that may make all of us want to leave Beijing for good. Findings from a study of Venus' atmosphere from the Pioneer 11 space probe show that the planet has lower levels of PM2.5 than Beijing.

The discovery has prompted environmental scientists and Beijingers alike to ask: Is a planet traditionally thought to be completely uninhabitable actually healthier than China's capital? And is there any prospect of Beijingers fleeing their city to live on Venus in the future?

Researcher Dong Feihua of the Environmental Petroleum Institute says this scenario could very well become a reality. "The evidence should be allowed to speak for itself: Venus' lower PM2.5 levels make it a healthier place to live than Beijing. Venus is one of the most famous planets in China, so certainly many Beijingers would welcome the opportunity to live there. Clearly there would be questions of transport infrastructure and building social harmony, but with everyone trying their best it is not a scientific impossibility."

The news, which broke on Chinese media on Saturday, March 30, already has prompted Taobao scammers seeking to profit from fake offers of clean-air space tourism. They have modeled their faux companies after space tourism startups based in the US and Russia and are asking for investments for research and construction of a spacecraft that would make the the more than 40 million kilometer journey to Venus. The China Foundation for Cosmos Studies (CFCS) estimated that it would take at least 50 years and more than RMB 10 trillion in private funding for any such capsule to become a reality, and argued that China should be focusing on finding more attainable and timely solutions for the pollution levels in Beijing.

Weibo users are generally frustrated with CFCS' prediction, saying Beijing needs to act more quickly. One user commented: "No hi-tech filtration mask is going to fix this. I would pay any amount of money to leave this planet if it means I'm going to be able to see my hand in front of my face when I go outside." Another user commented: "There is a saying 'Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.' Hopefully the Venus girls are more beautiful than our local girls!"

Chongqing and Guangzhou are also on the list of cities worse than our solar system's second planet from the sun. Several local NGOs have expressed interest in developing an interactive graphical data system that will chart the average PM2.5 levels in atmospheres across our galaxy in hopes of giving cities like Beijing a working model for air quality improvement.

Photo: Lights in the Dark on Flickr