Cleaner Tech
SpaceX Will Launch a Methane Satellite to Hold Super Polluters Accountable
Nonprofit Carbon Mapper will help manage the satellite’s use, making it the second non-profit led launch of a methane detector this year.
The majority of methane emissions in surveyed regions and sectors come from a small fraction of superemitters.
Photographer: Mauricio Palos/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
There’s about to be a new methane eye in the sky. SpaceX is scheduled to launch on Friday the Tanager-1 satellite.
The nonprofit Carbon Mapper is behind the satellite and will make the data available once it’s operational in the coming months. Tanager-1 is the second methane-detecting satellite launched in the past six months by a nonprofit, reflecting the growing scrutiny around the potent greenhouse gas and the satellites’ low cost relative to others used for atmospheric monitoring.