Space Station Experiment Maps Earth’s Methane ‘Super Emitters’

Scientists are using a powerful eye in the sky to spy on methane, which is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide.

The Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation instrument is also known as EMIT. Since being installed on the exterior of the International Space Station in July, the EMIT has been mapping the chemical composition of dust.

The main goal of EMIT is to make a difference. It is making another less expected contribution to climate studies. More than 50 of them have been identified by the instrument.

Limits on global warming can be achieved by reining in methane emissions. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement that the new development will help researchers better identify where methane leaks are coming from and give insight on how they can be addressed quickly.

Nelson said that the International Space Station and NASA's more than two dozen satellites and instruments in space have been useful in determining changes to the Earth's climate. "EMIT is proving to be a critical tool in our arsenal to measure this potent greenhouse gas - and stop it at the source."

The chemical fingerprints of minerals are identified by the EMIT. It's a happy accident that methane can be spotted.

Robert Green, principal investigator of the EMIT, said during a press conference that methane has a wavelength signature in the same range.

Some examples of the instrument's sensitivity were given by Green and other EMIT team members. The instrument was able to detect a large amount of methane in the sky above a landfill in Iran. About 18,700 pounds of methane is being pumped into the air every hour by this newfound super-emitter.

It pales in comparison to a group of 12 super-emitters EMIT spotted in Turkmenistan, all of them associated with oil and gas infrastructure. About 111,000 pounds of methane is being added to Earth's atmosphere every hour because of some of those plumes.

That is close to the peak rates of the Aliso Canyon leak. The Aliso Canyon event was first noticed in October 2015, but wasn't fully plugged until February 2016

All of the super-emitters were spotted very early by EMIT. As it gets fully up and running, and as scientists get more familiar with the instrument, it should make even more contributions.

Andrew Thorpe, a research technologist at JPL, said during Tuesday's press conference that they are only scratching the surface of EMIT's potential. The potential for EMIT to reduce emissions from human activity is exciting.

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