Air quality
Air quality in Tamale today
Updated
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (US AQI 101) 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, 10:46 pm (22:46 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Tamale, Northern, Ghana, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 101 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
- PM2.5
- 45 µg/m³ 3× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 113 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 39 µg/m³
Air quality in Tamale right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Tamale, Northern, Ghana is 101, 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.
PM2.5 is 45 µg/m³, 3 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 113 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 39 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 9.4 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Tamale vs the rest of Ghana
Across 6 Ghana cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 59 (Moderate). Tamale at 101 is 42 points worse than average.
It ranks 6 of 6 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Takoradi (42) and the most polluted Tamale (101).
For context, the median across 3,556 cities worldwide is 58.
Air quality in cities near Tamale
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kumasi | 314 km | 79 | Moderate | 33.8 |
| Saaba | 336 km | 101 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 58.4 |
| Ouagadougou | 338 km | 101 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 58.4 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Tamale, 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 45 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 102 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 90 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 101, 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 Tamale
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.