Air quality comparison · Tajikistan, 232 km apart
Istaravshan vs Kŭlob Air quality index (AQI) today
Kŭlob has cleaner air than Istaravshan right now: AQI 29 (Good) against 51 (Moderate).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Kŭlob averaged AQI 29 against 54, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. Kŭlob has more tree cover.
Tajikistan
AQI 51
Moderate
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 9.6 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 10, 18:00 local
Tajikistan
AQI 29
Good
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 5.9 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 10, 20:00 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Istaravshan51Kŭlob29
Head to head
Istaravshan vs Kŭlob at a glance
Kŭlob is ahead on 5 of 5 measures, and Istaravshan on 0. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Istaravshan | Kŭlob | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 51 | 29 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 9.6 | 5.9 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 54 | 29 (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 5.1% | 14.5% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 78.2K | 48.7K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Istaravshan and Kŭlob right now?
Kŭlob has cleaner air than Istaravshan right now: AQI 29 (Good) against 51 (Moderate). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Both readings are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either.
IstaravshanKŭlob
Concentrations at the same moment as the index above, for the pollutants both places report. Lower is better. The dark marks on the PM2.5 and PM10 rows show the WHO's 24-hour guidelines (15 and 45 µg/m³).
Istaravshan: Estimate · model corrected with 2 station cities within 165 km, e.g. Khujand and Tashkent. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 165 km, US EPA index.
Kŭlob: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Kŭlob averaged AQI 29 against 54, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. A single reading can catch a city on a bad afternoon; the week says whether it was the weather or the place.
- Cleaner days
- Istaravshan0Kŭlob7
- Average AQI
- Istaravshan54Kŭlob29
- Worst day, AQI
- Istaravshan82Kŭlob50
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Istaravshan | Kŭlob |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 4 | 82 | 50 |
| Nov 5 | 74 | 40 |
| Nov 6 | 64 | 25 |
| Nov 7 | 44 | 31 |
| Nov 8 | 42 | 26 |
| Nov 9 | 38 | 16 |
| Nov 10 | 37 | 16 |
Daily averages from the CAMS atmospheric model for both places, so the week compares like with like. They can differ from today's reading at the top of the page wherever that comes from a ground station.
What it means today
Is it safe to go outside in Istaravshan and Kŭlob today?
Istaravshan (AQI 51, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Kŭlob (AQI 29, Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Exercise outdoors
- Istaravshan
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
- Kŭlob
- A good day to be active outside.
Windows
- Istaravshan
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
- Kŭlob
- Open them to air the house.
Masks
- Istaravshan
- Not needed for most people.
- Kŭlob
- Not needed.
Air purifier
- Istaravshan
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
- Kŭlob
- Not needed.
Against everywhere else
How do Istaravshan and Kŭlob compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Istaravshan's air is cleaner than 60% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Kŭlob's is cleaner than 80%. Within Tajikistan, that is 17% and 67% of its 7 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Istaravshan
- Beats 60%
- Kŭlob
- Beats 80%
More tree cover than…
- Istaravshan
- Beats 10%
- Kŭlob
- Beats 33%
Includes model estimates as well as station readings, so it can differ from our most polluted and cleanest air rankings, which use station readings only.
Satellite timelapses
Watch both change, year by year
A clear satellite photo a year of the land around each city. Press play, turn on the forest cleared since the first year, or drag the before and after.
Istaravshan
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Kŭlob
2018: satellite photo from August 2018 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Istaravshan or Kŭlob?
Kŭlob has more tree cover: 14.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 5.1% around Istaravshan, or about 45,553 trees against 16,022.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Istaravshan | Kŭlob | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 16.0K | 45.6K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 78.2K | 48.7K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 352K kg | 1.0M kg (better) |
Tree cover on the satellite image
The same 2 km radius around each center, with the tree cover the satellite found marked on it.
Reading these numbers
How this comparison is made
Air quality index
The US EPA index, computed from current pollutant concentrations: ground stations where a place has them nearby, and the CAMS atmospheric model everywhere else. It moves hour to hour, so it is a snapshot rather than a verdict on either place. The guideline marks are from the WHO's 2021 air quality guidelines.
Trees and forest
Tree cover is the share of ground under canopy within 2 km of each center, read from Sentinel-2 satellite imagery at 10 m detail. It measures that circle, not the whole municipality, which is what makes the two comparable. Forest loss comes from the University of Maryland's Global Forest Change maps.
More on the method on the About Airleaf page.
Frequently asked
Istaravshan vs Kŭlob: your questions answered
Is Kŭlob cleaner than Istaravshan?
On air quality, yes, right now: Kŭlob reads AQI 29 against 51, a gap of 22 points on the US EPA index. This is a live reading rather than an annual average, so it can reverse within a day. Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Kŭlob averaged AQI 29 against 54, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Istaravshan and Kŭlob today?
In Istaravshan, at AQI 51: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. In Kŭlob, at AQI 29: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Which has more trees, Istaravshan or Kŭlob?
Kŭlob has more tree cover: 14.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 5.1% around Istaravshan, or about 45,553 trees against 16,022. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Istaravshan and Kŭlob need?
Istaravshan needs about 78,226 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Kŭlob about 48,695 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Istaravshan and Kŭlob measured the same way?
The method is the same: the US EPA index for air, and Sentinel-2 satellite imagery at 10 m detail over an identical radius for trees. Both readings are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Istaravshan vs Kŭlob comparison update?
The air readings refresh about once an hour, and each reading's local time is shown at the top of the page. Tree cover comes from the latest clear satellite image of each area (Sep 17, 2026 and Sep 17, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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