“Some people are curious,” said Ranga Rajan Thiruvenkatachari, a graduate student in mechanical engineering, who is part of the research team that set up the equipment. “Sometimes I see people stopping to see what’s happening.”
It’s a question they get all the time, said Aaron Caddell, a senior mechanical engineering major, who is also part of the research team.
The equipment went up in mid-July and will remain in place for a few more weeks as part of a traffic and air pollution study along the 215 freeway.
Mechanical engineering Professor Akula Venkatram and his research team of two graduate students and 19 undergraduates received a $550,000 research award from the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, earlier this year for the study.