ASTHMA and hay fever sufferers will be among those to benefit from a project being launched at QinetiQ in Malvern.

The technology company, based in St Andrew's Road, is leading a consortium which has won an £800,000 contract to improve air quality forecasting.

The project will benefit people who suffer when the air quality is poor, by providing more timely and accurate early warnings.

QinetiQ is leading a team which includes the Met Office and the universities of Salford and Essex.

Researchers aim to use laser radars, or lidars, to gather accurate information on how the wind blows, especially in built-up areas.

They will use this information to provide better forecasting of pollution levels in towns and cities.

Dispersed

Project manager Dr Rob Young said: "The technical expertise which QinetiQ and our partners bring to this important project will enable better understanding of how pollution is dispersed around cities and towns.

"This in turn will provide valuable early warning to those vulnerable members of the community who are most susceptible to this pollution."

Local authorities are obliged by law to inform the public about air quality.

The lidar is similar to conventional radar but uses an invisible and harmless laser beam.

The pulsed lidar used in the project was developed in Malvern by Dr Guy Pearson. It can make more precise measurements that conventional radar by reflecting off tiny particles of dust or water.

The lidars themselves are being worked on at QinetiQ in Malvern and at the University of Salford. The software to pull the information together is being developed at the University of Essex.