Post by syzygy on Jun 24, 2016 6:52:15 GMT
Imaging a Methane Leak from Space
AVIRIS Aircraft data
- acquired January 12, 2016
EO-1 Satellite data
- acquired January 1, 2016
For the first time, an instrument onboard an orbiting spacecraft has measured the methane emissions leaking from a single facility on Earth’s surface. The observation by the Hyperion spectrometer on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) is an important breakthrough as scientists work to measure and monitor emissions of this potent greenhouse gas from space.
As described in a new paper accepted by the journal Geophysical Research Letters, the research team detected methane leaking near Aliso Canyon, California. In October 2015, employees of SoCalGas detected methane leaking from a large underground storage facility near Porter Ranch, California. As part of an investigation of the accidental methane release, EO-1’s Hyperion instrument successfully detected the gas on three separate overpasses during the winter of 2015-16.
The images above show the methane observations from Hyperion (second image) and from NASA’s Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), which was flown on a NASA ER-2 aircraft.
“This is the first time the methane emissions from a single facility have been observed from space,” said David R. Thompson, an atmospheric chemist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and an author of the study. “The percentage of atmospheric methane produced through human activities remains poorly understood. Future satellite instruments with much greater sensitivity can help resolve this question by surveying the biggest sources around the world and helping us to better understand and address this unknown factor in greenhouse gas emissions.”
read full article and more related reading here at earthobservatory.nasa.gov
AVIRIS Aircraft data
- acquired January 12, 2016
EO-1 Satellite data
- acquired January 1, 2016
For the first time, an instrument onboard an orbiting spacecraft has measured the methane emissions leaking from a single facility on Earth’s surface. The observation by the Hyperion spectrometer on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) is an important breakthrough as scientists work to measure and monitor emissions of this potent greenhouse gas from space.
As described in a new paper accepted by the journal Geophysical Research Letters, the research team detected methane leaking near Aliso Canyon, California. In October 2015, employees of SoCalGas detected methane leaking from a large underground storage facility near Porter Ranch, California. As part of an investigation of the accidental methane release, EO-1’s Hyperion instrument successfully detected the gas on three separate overpasses during the winter of 2015-16.
The images above show the methane observations from Hyperion (second image) and from NASA’s Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), which was flown on a NASA ER-2 aircraft.
“This is the first time the methane emissions from a single facility have been observed from space,” said David R. Thompson, an atmospheric chemist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and an author of the study. “The percentage of atmospheric methane produced through human activities remains poorly understood. Future satellite instruments with much greater sensitivity can help resolve this question by surveying the biggest sources around the world and helping us to better understand and address this unknown factor in greenhouse gas emissions.”
read full article and more related reading here at earthobservatory.nasa.gov
attached AVIRIS image overlay and landmark:
Methane leak - January 12 2016.kmz (1.01 KB)
