MethaneSAT

MethaneSAT was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon9 rocket from California, USA.

About MethaneSAT:

• MethaneSAT is an Earth observation satellite designed to track and measure methane emissions globally, offering more detailed observations with a significantly wider field of view compared to its predecessors.
• The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), a US-based nonprofit environmental advocacy group, is leading the project, in collaboration with Harvard University, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and the New Zealand Space Agency.
• It will orbit Earth 15 times a day, specifically monitoring the oil and gas sector, to generate a comprehensive dataset indicating “how much methane is coming from where, who’s responsible, and are those emissions going up or down over time”.
• The data collected will be publicly available for free in near real-time, enabling stakeholders and regulators to take informed actions to reduce methane emissions.

Features of MethaneSAT:

• Equipped with a high-resolution infrared sensor and a spectrometer, it can detect methane concentration differences as small as three parts per billion in the atmosphere.
  • This capability allows it to identify smaller emission sources previously undetectable by other satellites.
• It features a wide-camera view of about 200 km by 200 km, enabling it to pinpoint large methane emitters, known as “super emitters”.
• The collected data will be analyzed using cloud-computing and AI technology developed by Google, a mission partner, and made accessible through Google’s Earth Engine platform.

Need:

• Methane is an invisible, potent greenhouse gas, second only to carbon dioxide in contributing to global warming.
• It is responsible for 30% of global heating since the Industrial Revolution.
• Methane is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide at warming the Earth over a 20-year period. (United Nations Environment Programme)

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