PM2.5 is 2.7 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 2.7/22 × 0.5 = 0.1 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
▼ 4.5 µg/m³ less fine-particle pollution than St. Louis right now
PM2.5 is 3.5 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 3.5/22 × 0.5 = 0.1 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
▼ 3.7 µg/m³ less fine-particle pollution than St. Louis right now
~1 h 55 min drive/Illinois/Low smoke/ PM2.5 4.3 µg/m³
PM2.5 is 4.3 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 4.3/22 × 0.5 = 0.1 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
▼ 2.9 µg/m³ less fine-particle pollution than St. Louis right now
PM2.5 is 5 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 5/22 × 0.5 = 0.1 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
▼ 2.2 µg/m³ less fine-particle pollution than St. Louis right now
PM2.5 is 7.4 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 7.4/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 8.5 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 8.5/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 8.5 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 8.5/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 10.9 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 10.9/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 12.3 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 12.3/22 × 0.5 = 0.3 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 13.4 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 13.4/22 × 0.5 = 0.3 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 13.5 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 13.5/22 × 0.5 = 0.3 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 13.8 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 13.8/22 × 0.5 = 0.3 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 14.8 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 14.8/22 × 0.5 = 0.3 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 16.3 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 16.3/22 × 0.5 = 0.4 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 23.2 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 23.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.5 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
PM2.5 is 24.4 µg/m³ here vs 7.2 back home.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h out ≈ 24.4/22 × 0.5 = 0.6 here; 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 at home.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
Phew. Twelve hours out here is roughlyPM2.5 here is 7.2 µg/m³.Berkeley Earth: 22 µg/m³ for 24 h ≈ 1 cigarette.12 h outside ≈ 7.2/22 × 0.5 = 0.2 cigarettes.A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking.See how we work it out →
That is the fine-particle pollution you'd breathe standing outside all day inSt. Louis right now, turned into a number your body already understands.
A health-impact equivalence, not literal smoking: Berkeley Earth puts a full day at 22 µg/m³ of PM2.5 at about one cigarette.How we work this out
Why live rankings?
Smoke plumes are patchy and move with changing winds, terrain and weather. Nearby lakefront, coastal and higher-elevation places can be much clearer than St. Louis, but no direction is reliably cleaner. That is why this list is recalculated from live PM2.5 readings every hour instead of publishing a fixed escape route. If everything within three hours is smoky, the rankings will say so. Sometimes the honest answer is to stay inside with a filter running.