Millions of people in the globe are suffering from series health problems that result from air pollution, which emphasizes the importance of monitoring air pollution. Satellite remote sensing is a valuable tool to facilitate a better understanding of the pollutants. Satellite data can be used to measure and map air pollution due to its capabilities of providing complete views of large areas in only one image regularly due to the good temporal resolution of various satellite sensors. The variety of satellites offers the opportunity to estimate different air emissions such as nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), ammonia (NH₃), carbon monoxide (CO), some volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and aerosol optical depth (AOD), from which surface particulate matter (PM_2.5).

This paper presents a review of the capabilities of different satellite remote sensing in measuring air pollutants and the methods of processing and accessing satellite data for the mapping of pollutant concentrations.