An article published in the current issue of the journal Nature highlights the high-tech efforts and important findings of the California Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission and NASA to pinpoint emissions of the climate super pollutant methane. The results will be used to help state and local agencies and businesses prioritize investments to reduce emissions.

From August 2016 to October 2018, NASA, through a contract with the two state agencies, flew remote sensing equipment over selected portions of the state. Hundreds of methane point sources were identified during the California Methane Survey, including “super-emitters,” sources responsible for an outsized proportion of the total methane released into the atmosphere.

By California Energy Commission