Air quality
Air quality in Owerri today
Updated
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (US AQI 107) People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 7:00 pm (18:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 107 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
- PM2.5
- 33 µg/m³ 2.2× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 37 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 60 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 107
- Best hour tomorrow
- 6:00 pm AQI 93
- European AQI
- 51
Air quality in Owerri right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria is 107, which falls in the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" band (up to 150). People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors.
The index is driven mainly by PM2.5, whose own sub-index is 107. Fine and coarse particles come from traffic, heating, industry, dust and smoke; they build up on calm nights and clear when wind or rain arrives.
PM2.5 is 33 µg/m³, 2.2 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 37 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 60 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 6.6 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: carbon monoxide 695 µg/m³.
Owerri AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 93 around Mon 6:00 pm to 107 around Sun 7:00 pm, from "Moderate" at best to "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" at worst.
The following day looks similar, averaging about 95.
| Local time (Africa/Lagos) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 7:00 pm | 107 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 33.4 | 37 | 60 |
| Sun 10:00 pm | 95 | Moderate | 53.6 | 56 | 47 |
| Mon 1:00 am | 95 | Moderate | 37.1 | 40 | 40 |
| Mon 4:00 am | 95 | Moderate | 31 | 33 | 30 |
| Mon 7:00 am | 95 | Moderate | 40.3 | 43 | 28 |
| Mon 10:00 am | 96 | Moderate | 20.8 | 25 | 73 |
| Mon 1:00 pm | 96 | Moderate | 16.9 | 22 | 84 |
| Mon 4:00 pm | 94 | Moderate | 17.6 | 21 | 84 |
| Mon 7:00 pm | 93 | Moderate | 41.6 | 44 | 53 |
| Mon 10:00 pm | 96 | Moderate | 58.1 | 60 | 33 |
| Tue 1:00 am | 97 | Moderate | 42.6 | 44 | 31 |
| Tue 4:00 am | 97 | Moderate | 19.8 | 21 | 33 |
| Tue 7:00 am | 95 | Moderate | 42.3 | 43 | 23 |
| Tue 10:00 am | 95 | Moderate | 17.5 | 20 | 70 |
| Tue 1:00 pm | 95 | Moderate | 15.2 | 19 | 84 |
| Tue 4:00 pm | 95 | Moderate | 20 | 23 | 67 |
| Tue 7:00 pm | 95 | Moderate | 82.2 | 84 | 43 |
Every third hour of the CAMS forecast via Open-Meteo. US AQI uses rolling averages (24 h for particles, 8 h for ozone), so it moves more slowly than the hourly concentrations.
Best time to be outside in Owerri tomorrow
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air tomorrow is forecast around 6:00 pm (AQI 93, Moderate) and the worst around 8:00 am (AQI 96). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.
Owerri vs the rest of Nigeria
Across 69 Nigeria cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 106 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). Owerri at 107 is about average.
It ranks 39 of 69 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Calabar (64) and the most polluted Kano (239).
For context, the median across 3,909 cities worldwide is 57.
Air quality in cities near Owerri
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Umuahia | 51 km | 80 | Moderate | 23.1 |
| Aba | 56 km | 81 | Moderate | 26.1 |
| Nkpor | 77 km | 106 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 34.5 |
| Port Harcourt | 79 km | 69 | Moderate | 17.5 |
| Onitsha | 79 km | 106 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 34.5 |
| Okrika | 83 km | 69 | Moderate | 17.5 |
| Yenagoa | 105 km | 67 | Moderate | 16.6 |
| Uyo | 111 km | 73 | Moderate | 22.3 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Owerri, so the numbers on this page are model estimates. Models capture regional pollution well but can miss very local sources such as a busy road or a nearby fire.
Wildfire smoke
PM2.5 is forecast to reach 54 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 185 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 18 km away). Smoke is a likely contributor: keep windows closed, run an air purifier or HVAC filter, and check the fire map before heading out.
Advice for sensitive groups
At 107, children, older adults, pregnant people and anyone with asthma, COPD or heart disease should limit time outdoors, especially strenuous activity. A well-fitted N95/FFP2 mask cuts particle exposure; it does not filter ozone.
What the US AQI numbers mean
| US AQI | Category | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 0-50 | Good | Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no risk; a good time for outdoor activity. |
| 51-100 | Moderate | Acceptable for most people. Unusually sensitive people should consider shortening long or heavy exertion outdoors. |
| 101-150 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors. |
| 151-200 | Unhealthy | Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed. |
| 201-300 | Very Unhealthy | Health alert: everyone should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors, and sensitive groups should stay indoors. |
| 301-500 | Hazardous | Emergency conditions: everyone should avoid all outdoor physical activity and stay indoors with filtered air if possible. The scale tops out at 500; heavier dust or smoke is shown as 500. |
Values on this page are modelled by CAMS (Copernicus) and served by Open-Meteo; they are estimates for the area around the city centre, not readings from an official monitor.
Nearby cities
More for Owerri
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.