Greenhouse gas: ESA satellite finds the largest continuous methane leaks
As a greenhouse gas, methane is much more potent than carbon dioxide, so closing large sources is important. Particularly long-lived sources are now identified.
Map of the average methane concentration in the Earth's atmosphere, from 1600 ppb (dark blue) to 2000 ppb (dark red)
(Image: ESA Climate Change Initiative GHG Project (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data, 2024))
With the help of the European earth observation satellite Sentinel-5P, a research team has located the largest continuous sources of methane in the world. Most of them are artificial sources associated with the extraction of fossil fuels. The European Space Agency (ESA) has now made this public and backed up the announcement with figures. For example, well over two million tons of methane are released into the atmosphere each year from the various coal production areas in China and Russia, while oil and gas production areas in Turkmenistan and the USA contribute a further 3.5 and 2.2 million tons respectively. However, a particularly large amount comes from wetlands in South Sudan and Argentina.
Much more potent as a greenhouse gas than COâ‚‚
The data was collected as part of the Copernicus Earth observation program, which can identify particularly large methane leaks anywhere on Earth within a few days. For the study now presented, however, the focus was on methane sources that continuously emitted methane into the atmosphere over the entire observation period of four years. A world map of the largest of these sources shows that a number of them are of natural origin, such as those in South Sudan. In the wetlands, microbes produce large quantities of this extremely effective greenhouse gas. According to the study, the largest and third-largest persistent sources of methane are of natural origin.
(Image:Â ESA Climate Change Initiative GHG Project (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data, 2024))
Much more interesting are the sources identified that are attributable to human activities, as these could possibly be closed. A particularly large number of persistent sources in North America, the Middle East, Central Asia and China are attributable to oil, gas, and coal extraction. One Chinese province alone is home to three of the ten largest methane sources, all of which can be traced back to coal extraction. Other sources can be found in landfills, wastewater treatment plants, in areas with large numbers of livestock and in connection with rice cultivation and energy production. Europe accounts for only a few of the sources.
Videos by heise
The search for large methane leaks and their closure is of great importance because the gas is significantly more effective as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. It therefore contributes to global warming. At the same time, however, it does not remain in the atmosphere for as long and emissions have risen sharply in recent years. This increase could prove to be the biggest obstacle on the way to limiting global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, which is why reducing methane emissions is considered particularly important in the fight against climate change. The study on continuous methane sources was published in the journal Atmosphere, Chemistry and Physics.
(mho)
