- Google launches methane satellite
- Targets oil, gas emissions
- Aims to complement existing tools
A satellite initiative launched in March, supported by tech giant Google, will gather global methane concentration data.
The new satellite will orbit the Earth at 300 miles, completing 15 orbits daily.
Methane gas, a significant contributor to global warming due to its heat retention capability, is largely emitted by farming and waste disposal. However, this Google initiative will focus on emissions from oil and gas facilities.
Methane is often released or flared by oil and gas extraction companies.
This project is a collaboration between Google and the Environmental Defence Fund, a non-profit global climate organisation.
Google’s artificial intelligence tools will process the satellite data to create a methane map, aiding in the detection of leaks in gas and hydrocarbon infrastructures globally.
The company has stated that it will not directly notify the owners of the infrastructure in the case of a significant leak.
“Our responsibility is to ensure the accessibility of information,” the statement added, indicating that governments and regulators would have access to this information and could require actions to be taken.
Currently, there is no international regulation specifically targeting methane emissions. The EU has agreed to a proposal requiring oil and gas operators to fix leaks and has banned flaring in the coal sector from 2025.
The methane map Google plans to release on its Earth Engine will not provide real-time data. The satellite will update the information every few weeks.
Satellite Data Targets Methane Culprits
The European Space Agency launched Tropomi in 2017, a satellite instrument for detecting trace gases, including methane, in the atmosphere. Its mission, initially set for a minimum of seven years, could end this year.
In 2022, Carbon Mapper, using Tropomi data, reported the highest methane concentrations in Russia, the USA, and Turkmenistan. It noted that cloud cover excluded data from Canada and China.
Google hopes its initiative will complement existing tools, despite the continued high levels of methane emissions. Methane’s concentration has more than doubled over the last two centuries, with human activity responsible for 60% of its production, according to NASA.
A significant portion of this is from livestock, especially cows, which emit methane through digestion.
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The US Environmental Protection Agency estimated in 2020 that a single cow could emit 154-264 pounds of methane annually. Around 1.5 billion cows are globally raised for their meat.
Professor Peter Thorne of Maynooth University in Ireland noted, “Satellites are fantastic for locating the biggest culprits of methane emissions,” but highlighted the difficulty in detecting more diffuse sources, such as those from agriculture.
