City report · Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
Natal Air quality today
Air quality in Natal currently reads AQI 52 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 52
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 9.2
- tree cover
- 17.0%
- trees in this area
- 49.7K
- more trees needed
- 38.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Barro Vermelho, Natal - RN, Brazil (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Nov 7, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Natal · AQI 52 (Moderate)
Natal's tree count comes to 49,722 trees across 11.7 km² of land, 13 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 38,023 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Natal today: AQI 52, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 07:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
9.2
PM10
15.4
NO₂
1.5
O₃
41.0
SO₂
0.6
CO
139.0
- Outdoor exercise
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier
- Windows
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Natal's daily AQI at 49 on average, from 46 on Nov 5 to an hourly peak of 56 on Nov 5.
Where Natal stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Natal: Critically low
17.0% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 11.7 km² of land.
Trees in this area
49,722
Target trees
87,745
More trees needed
38,023
CO₂ if planted / yr
836.5 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Natal lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Natal has lost about 164 hectares of forest (about 230 football pitches): 4.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (95%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from November 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 164 haabout 230 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 4.5%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 156 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2009, when about 28 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2002 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2003 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2006 | 20 ha | 1 ha | 21 ha |
| 2007 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 10 ha |
| 2008 | 18 ha | under 1 ha | 18 ha |
| 2009 | 28 ha | under 1 ha | 28 ha |
| 2010 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2011 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2012 | 11 ha | under 1 ha | 11 ha |
| 2013 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2014 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2017 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2018 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2020 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2021 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2022 | 5 ha | 2 ha | 6 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2025 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Natal?
- Towns and roadscleared for good71% · 116 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good25% · 41 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown4% · 7 ha
Also: storms, floods and other natural causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 2,710 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,670 ha
- Overall change
- −34 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Natal stayed about the same size, at about 2,670 hectares: new forest grew on about 59 hectares, and about 94 hectares were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, Global Forest Change (GFC-2025-v1.13); causes: WRI/Google DeepMind drivers of forest loss; both CC BY 4.0, summed by Airleaf for each area. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Natal
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- São Gonçalo do Amarante13.3 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 47%
- Air quality
- 42
- Parnamirim14.7 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 14%
- Air quality
- 52
- Santa Rita148.9 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 14%
- Air quality
- 53
- João Pessoa151.7 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 18%
- Air quality
- 38
- Campina Grande176.0 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 5%
- Air quality
- 33
- Igarassu229.2 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 43%
- Air quality
- 43
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Frequently asked
Questions about Natal
What is the air quality (AQI) in Natal right now?
The latest reading for Natal shows an AQI of 52 (Moderate), observed Nov 10, 07:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Natal today?
At AQI 52 (Moderate): fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier. Windows: fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution. Masks: not needed for most people. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Natal been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Natal's daily AQI at 49 on average, from 46 on Nov 5 to an hourly peak of 56 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Natal lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Natal has lost about 164 hectares of forest (about 230 football pitches): 4.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (95%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Natal stayed about the same size, at about 2,670 hectares: new forest grew on about 59 hectares, and about 94 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Natal?
Natal has an estimated 49,722 trees across the 11.7 km² of land measured — 17.0% tree cover, 13 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Natal need?
Natal needs roughly 38,023 more trees to close a 13-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 836.5 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Natal's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality comes from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where one reports nearby, and otherwise, as here, from the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, which may differ from street-level monitors. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 2 km radius around Barro Vermelho; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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