Air quality
Air quality in São Gonçalo today
Updated
Moderate (US AQI 78) Acceptable for most people. Unusually sensitive people should consider shortening long or heavy exertion outdoors. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 3:00 pm (18:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for São Gonçalo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 78 Moderate
- PM2.5
- 16 µg/m³ 1.1× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 17 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 113 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 78
- Best hour today
- 9:00 pm AQI 68
- European AQI
- 53
Air quality in São Gonçalo right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for São Gonçalo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is 78, which falls in the "Moderate" band (up to 100). Acceptable for most people. Unusually sensitive people should consider shortening long or heavy exertion outdoors.
The index is driven mainly by PM2.5, whose own sub-index is 78. 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 16 µg/m³, 1.1 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 17 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 113 µg/m³ (above the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 14 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: carbon monoxide 280 µg/m³.
NASA FIRMS shows 9 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 28 km), but particle levels are not elevated enough to point to smoke right now.
São Gonçalo AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 56 around Mon 3:00 pm to 78 around Sun 3:00 pm, staying "Moderate" throughout.
The following day is expected to be cleaner, averaging about 54 against 64 for the next 24 hours.
| Local time (America/Sao_Paulo) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 3:00 pm | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 | 17 | 113 |
| Sun 6:00 pm | 74 | Moderate | 10.6 | 13 | 77 |
| Sun 9:00 pm | 68 | Moderate | 12.7 | 15 | 58 |
| Mon 12:00 am | 64 | Moderate | 14.6 | 18 | 53 |
| Mon 3:00 am | 62 | Moderate | 10.5 | 14 | 48 |
| Mon 6:00 am | 60 | Moderate | 13.2 | 17 | 44 |
| Mon 9:00 am | 59 | Moderate | 12.8 | 17 | 48 |
| Mon 12:00 pm | 57 | Moderate | 10.5 | 14 | 62 |
| Mon 3:00 pm | 56 | Moderate | 8.4 | 12 | 60 |
| Mon 6:00 pm | 55 | Moderate | 10.5 | 15 | 49 |
| Mon 9:00 pm | 55 | Moderate | 10.3 | 15 | 44 |
| Tue 12:00 am | 54 | Moderate | 10.6 | 14 | 34 |
| Tue 3:00 am | 54 | Moderate | 10.5 | 14 | 31 |
| Tue 6:00 am | 53 | Moderate | 13 | 17 | 24 |
| Tue 9:00 am | 53 | Moderate | 13.2 | 18 | 62 |
| Tue 12:00 pm | 53 | Moderate | 13.8 | 19 | 83 |
| Tue 3:00 pm | 54 | Moderate | 12.8 | 18 | 79 |
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 São Gonçalo today
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air today is forecast around 9:00 pm (AQI 68, Moderate) and the worst around 3:00 pm (AQI 78). That is a swing of 10 points, so a run or walk around 9:00 pm is noticeably better.
São Gonçalo vs the rest of Brazil
Across 171 Brazil cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 56 (Moderate). São Gonçalo at 78 is 22 points worse than average.
It ranks 163 of 171 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Santa Maria (25) and the most polluted Manaus (137).
For context, the median across 3,909 cities worldwide is 57.
Air quality in cities near São Gonçalo
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Niterói | 8 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
| Rio de Janeiro | 16 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
| Magé | 19 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
| Duque de Caxias | 27 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
| São João de Meriti | 33 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
| Belford Roxo | 36 km | 83 | Moderate | 9.1 |
| Nilópolis | 37 km | 83 | Moderate | 9.1 |
| Barra da Tijuca | 37 km | 78 | Moderate | 15.9 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of São Gonçalo, 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.
Advice for sensitive groups
At 78, most people are fine outdoors. If you are unusually sensitive to PM2.5, keep long or intense workouts to the cleaner hours shown above.
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 São Gonçalo
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.