NASA Launched Tanager I Satellite

Recently, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Tanager I Satellite to track methane and carbon dioxide emissions. 

Key Highlights

• It is a carbon mapper coalition satellite which will use imaging spectrometer technology to measure methane and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. 
• It will measure hundreds of wavelengths of light reflected by the Earth Surface.
• Different compounds in the atmosphere absorb different wavelengths of light and leave ‘spectral fingerprints’ that can be identified by the imaging spectrometer technology. 

 

Methane (CH4)

• Methane (CH4) is an invisible, odorless but strong greenhouse gas, and the second largest contributor to global warming after CO2.
• It also contributes to the formation of ground level ozone, which is a harmful air pollutant. 

 

Carbon Mapper Coalition

• It is a public private partnership, working together to develop and deploy two satellites that will help us to detect, quantify and share data on greenhouse gas emissions.