New Satellite Launches to Track CO2 Emissions

In a groundbreaking development in environmental monitoring, Canadian company GHGSat launched a satellite on Saturday that will, for the first time, track carbon dioxide emissions from individual facilities such as coal plants and steel mills directly from space. This launch marks a significant step in using space-age technology to combat climate change.

The satellite, named Vanguard, was successfully launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, as announced by GHGSat. This initiative represents a major advancement in environmental technology, using the power of satellite observation to hold industries accountable for their carbon footprint.

In recent years, the use of satellites has become increasingly crucial in environmental monitoring. Vanguard joins a growing network of satellites that have been instrumental in detecting methane emissions, a challenging task given methane's tendency to leak from various small sources like pipelines and farms. Methane, an invisible yet potent greenhouse gas, has been harder to track due to its diffuse sources.

Carbon dioxide, responsible for nearly 80% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, is typically released from large-scale industrial operations. Current satellites monitoring carbon dioxide are not equipped to focus on emissions at the level of individual facilities, a gap that Vanguard aims to fill.

Previous satellite data has revealed that methane emissions are generally higher than estimated, and Germain suspects a similar trend may be discovered for carbon dioxide. The insights gathered by Vanguard will be invaluable in reinforcing the accuracy of government emissions inventories, scientific modeling, and corporate greenhouse gas reporting, which are crucial for investors and policymakers.

GHGSat's initiative is not just a technological achievement but also a commercial opportunity. The data collected by Vanguard is available for sale, catering to industrial emitters aiming to reduce their emissions, as well as to governments and scientists. This development represents a critical step forward in environmental accountability and the fight against climate change, offering a new level of transparency and precision in emissions monitoring.