The Breath Eaters 2.0 is an an animated, custom software artwork that visualizes PM2.5 pollutants produced by wildfire and fossil fuel plant emissions. Inspired by an open source AI image of a World War II propaganda map and presented as a live, generative composition, the work demonstrates how particulate pollution is carried into the high atmosphere and across the globe on currents of wind. The Breath Eaters v2.0 broadcasts real-time data from NASA’s fire detection systems (FIRMS), Global Energy Monitor’s global fossil fuel power plant database, and NOAA’s global forecast system.

Beyond visualizing global emissions, we are asking: if carbon has been extracted and liberated to roam the globe on the winds, why is the world of beings (human, plant, animal) constrained by national boundaries, walled in and walled out? It’s our hope that a near-live data stream of pollution’s transnationalism will give rise to empathy in viewers—this map can look very different with planetary action.

This second iteration made significant improvements to the data and its visualization, using open source AI to generate limitless instances of unique energy plants and fires.