MethaneSAT
The Future of Public Global Methane Emission Transparency
MethaneSAT will be the most advanced methane tracker in space. Launching in 2023, it will measure emissions with greater precision than any other satellite – delivering data on emissions that others can’t track. And MethaneSAT data will be public, for anyone to see and compare.
The goal: To catalyze faster action by countries and companies to reduce their methane emissions.
Next Level Precision
Next Level Precision
Some satellites can track methane globally, but can’t detect smaller sources responsible for much of the total. Others provide excellent data from known sites, but leave out sources beyond a small viewing area.
MethaneSAT provides a wide field of view that can find and measure even the smallest amounts of methane with exceptional precision – detecting concentrations as small as 3 parts per billion.
Groundbreaking analytics mean rapid turnaround, providing valuable emissions data in an actionable time frame.
How Much How Fast?
How Much, How Fast?
Unlike other satellites, MethaneSAT will give users emission rates, revealing how much methane is escaping where, and how fast, across wide areas as well as individual source locations – providing crucial insight for prioritizing solutions to achieve the biggest reductions faster.
MethaneSAT will cover the globe every few days, pinpointing larger emissions sources to within 400 meters. And it will deliver the first real accounting of total emissions across sources large and small.
How Much How Fast?
How Much, How Fast?
Unlike other satellites, MethaneSAT will give users emission rates, revealing how much methane is escaping where, and how fast, across wide areas as well as individual source locations – providing crucial insight for prioritizing solutions to achieve the biggest reductions faster.
MethaneSAT will cover the globe every few days, pinpointing larger emissions sources to within 400 meters. And it will deliver the first real accounting of total emissions across sources large and small.
Catalyst for Action
Catalyst for Action
MethaneSAT will bring a new level of visibility and transparency to methane emissions around the world. Officials and operators will be able to find and fix problems faster, while stakeholders can see and compare progress against goals, commitments, and legal obligations.
Public data means anyone – regulators, investors, buyers, and the public – will now be able to see where emissions occur, the rate at which they are occurring, and how they’re changing over time.
A Crucial Opportunity
A Crucial Opportunity
Analysis by the International Energy Agency suggests that the industry could cut its methane emissions 70% using technologies available today.
As demand for methane emissions data grows, an ecosystem of methane-detecting satellites, each with distinct capabilities and purpose, will give companies, regulators, investors, and the public a new level of insight, transparency, and accountability for tackling this climate challenge.
Learn More About Methane Here
More About MethaneSAT
More About MethaneSAT
MethaneSAT, LLC is a not-for-profit subsidiary of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), a leading international nonprofit organization. EDF links science, economics, law, and innovative private sector partnerships to create transformational solutions to the most serious environmental problems.
Learn More at MethaneSAT.org and EDF.org
Experience it in Augmented Reality
Next Level Precision
Some satellites can track methane on a global scale, but can’t detect countless smaller sources responsible for much of the total. Others provide excellent data from known sites, but leave out sources beyond a small viewing area.
MethaneSAT bridges the gap by providing a wide field of view that can find and measure even the smallest amounts of methane with exceptional precision – detecting concentrations as small as 3 parts per billion, or just 5kg of methane per hour from across a square kilometer.
Groundbreaking analytics mean rapid turnaround, providing valuable emissions data in an actionable timeframe.
A Crucial Opportunity
According to the International Energy Agency, the worldwide oil and gas industry emits more than 80 million tons of methane each year across its supply chain – from wells and processing to pipelines, storage, and transport. Emissions continue to be very high, a fact that demands urgent and deliberate action.
Analysis by the International Energy Agency suggests that the industry could cut its methane emissions 70% using technologies available today. Roughly half of those cuts would have no net cost. Infrared cameras can make them visible, and sensing technology can measure concentration levels and leak rates. But the challenge is too big for Earthbound technologies alone.
As demand for methane emissions data grows, an ecosystem of methane-detecting satellites, each with distinct capabilities and purpose, will give companies, regulators, investors, and the public a new level of insight, transparency, and accountability for tackling this climate challenge. MethaneSAT is bringing crucial new capabilities to the table.
FAQ
A: MethaneSAT will measure differences in atmospheric concentrations of methane as low as 3 parts per billion- higher precision than existing satellites. It is specifically designed to measure the smallest possible differences in concentrations, allowing for automated calculation of methane emissions rates.
Existing satellites can reveal variation in methane concentrations across the globe, but they can’t easily determine where the methane came from, or measure areas with lower-level emissions.
Knowing how much methane is escaping and from where, as well as how those emissions are changing over time, is critical for achieving the biggest possible reductions at the lowest possible cost.
A: MethaneSAT will provide seamless access to quantitative methane emissions data. Our revolutionary cloud-based data platform will automate calculations and integrate them into the data collection process, greatly accelerating the availability of data. Actionable emissions intelligence will be accessible in a matter of days – giving governments and operators unprecedented ability to target emissions at the source and allowing other stakeholders to see and compare performance by company or geography.
A: Understanding the rate at which a particular methane source is emitting will help oil and gas operators prioritize where to send repair crews. It will help the financial industry identify which companies are on track with their emissions reduction goals. Policymakers will be able to quantify methane emissions totals for their regions, and in most cases see who is responsible.
MethaneSAT data will also help enable the quantification of sector wise methane emissions data globally, starting with the oil and gas sector.
A: MethaneSAT will launch in 2023. Once in orbit, initial “first look” data will be collected. A regular stream of data will be available a few months after launch, following positioning and calibration procedures.
A: The satellite will orbit the Earth approximately 15 times per day, taking about 90 minutes to complete each orbit. With its wide field of view, MethaneSAT will be able to see over 80% of global oil and gas production in about 150 targets (and 90% in about 300 targets). Through consideration of available light, Earth angle, and daily weather patterns the satellite will maximize collection of usable data.
A: Our groundbreaking data platform will be based entirely in the cloud – dramatically improving access, reliability, and processing speed. Using state-of-the-art analytical tools based in atmospheric science and remote sensing, the data platform will automate calculations to provide seamless access to methane emissions data tools. The platform will reduce a process that often takes weeks or months to just a few days.
Users will have access to actionable high-quality information faster and more easily than ever through the MethaneSAT.org portal.
A: MethaneSAT is designed with a unique set of technical capabilities. Twin spectrometers aboard the satellite will measure methane and oxygen concentrations in the atmospheric column using light reflected off the surface of the Earth.
A: Ball Aerospace is the satellite instrument developer. Blue Canyon Technologies is building the platform that supplies power, navigation, propulsion, and communications. We are working with Harvard University and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory to develop MethaneSAT’s data processing algorithms.
The satellite will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Once in orbit, the satellite will be operated from a New Zealand-based mission control center developed by Rocket Lab.
A: MethaneSAT can detect emissions from a diversity of sources. For instance, we will be measuring emissions from agricultural sources, releasing that data as it becomes available.