The Carbon Mapper Coalition, a California-based coalition that includes the state government and philanthropic organizations, has launched a methane-detecting satellite that will help track dangerous pollutants including methane.
The coalition is led by Carbon Mapper, a nonprofit organization, and includes Planet Labs PBC, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab, Rocky Mountain Institute, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), Arizona State University, and others. The coalition has received philanthropic support from High Tide Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and the Grantham Foundation.
The Tanager-1 satellite was launched by Planet Labs from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The satellite is designed to detect, pinpoint, and quantify super-emitters at a level of granularity needed to support direct mitigation action. The data collected by the satellite will provide a more complete, precise, and timely measurement of methane source level emissions, in addition to more than 25 other environmental indicators.
The coalition believes the launch of this satellite “lays the groundwork for additional satellites that could track upwards of 40% of global methane emissions.” The coalition added that tackling methane emissions is “critical” to combating the climate crisis because methane is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide emissions for near-term warming of the planet.
“With today’s satellite launch, California will track harmful pollution and hold polluters accountable,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in an Aug. 16 statement. “We couldn’t have done this without our cutting-edge public-private partnership backed by philanthropy. And this is just the beginning – we have more satellites going up in the coming years that will provide real-time methane detection and enforcement.”
