Just over a month after its launch on August 16, Tanager-1 has already started delivering key data. This satellite is part of a larger fleet being developed by a coalition led by Carbon Mapper in partnership with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Planet Labs PBC, and other organizations, including RMI and Arizona State University. Financial support has come from several philanthropic groups, including the High Tide Foundation, Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Children's Investment Fund Foundation, and Zegar Family Foundation.
Since 2016, Carbon Mapper has conducted aerial surveys to develop the technology and processes needed to detect and quantify major methane and CO2 emissions, known as super-emitters. Early efforts identified that nearly half of the super-emitting events (>100 kg CH4/h) reported to state agencies were previously unknown, enabling prompt mitigation efforts. This groundwork is now being used to translate satellite data into actionable emissions reduction strategies.
"Detecting and quantifying methane and carbon dioxide detections so quickly with Tanager-1 is a testament to the unique partnership we established. I'm so proud of this outcome after all the hard work by our coalition," said Carbon Mapper CEO Riley Duren. "This milestone is made possible by the support of our donors who have invested in the satellite technology, science, data platform, engagement program - and most importantly, the team. These first detections are just the beginning; we are on track to routinely publish high-quality emissions data from Tanager-1 in the near future."
"To meet ambitious climate goals, it is important for philanthropy to lead carefully and follow fast. This is exactly what we have done with our investment in the Carbon Mapper coalition. We were methodical in how we built an emissions monitoring program to drive transparency and actionable emissions insights, and we have delivered," said Richard Lawrence, Founder and Executive Chairman of High Tide Foundation. "Now is the time to quickly scale up investments to get this data into the right hands so we can accelerate global actions to cut methane and CO2."
Carbon Mapper's data portal makes all methane and CO2 detections publicly accessible for noncommercial use, updated regularly with emissions data gathered from remote sensing sources.
"Reducing methane pollution starts with measuring it," said Michael R. Bloomberg, UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions and Founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies. "Data from the Tanager-1 satellite is providing us with the real-time data necessary to pinpoint methane leaks at their source and clean them up. This new technology is crucial to curbing emissions from one of the biggest contributors to climate change."
The data from Carbon Mapper, combined with other emissions monitoring programs, will play a crucial role in helping governments meet the goals of the Global Methane Pledge, which aims to reduce global methane emissions by 30% by 2030. This data will also be valuable for industries like energy, waste, and agriculture, helping companies track and verify emissions reductions throughout their supply chains.
Tanager-1 is still in its commissioning phase, which includes calibration and validation of its systems. Once completed, Carbon Mapper will ramp up its operations, making emissions data widely accessible to support emissions mitigation efforts at the source.
Related Links
Carbon Mapper Data Portal
Carbon Worlds - where graphite, diamond, amorphous, fullerenes meet
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
