A 4.6-mile-long methane cloud over Wyoming was discovered by a satellite, and it included much more gas than the gas plant’s operator had reported to authorities it had emitted.
Bloomberg states On December 6 and 7, the Douglas Gas Plant of Tallgrass Energy mistakenly released 2.1 metric tonnes of methane across five distinct releases. Just before the last emission ended, NASA’s Landsat 9 satellite saw the cloud.
Scientists calculated that methane released at a rate of 76 to 184 metric tonnes per hour was enough to create the 4.6-mile cloud.
Manfredi Caltagirone, director of the International Methane Emissions Observatory, told Bloomberg that it is extremely implausible that the operator’s reported volume could account for the facility’s observed emissions rate.
Over the course of 20 years, methane captures more heat in the atmosphere than CO2.
One of the most effective and economical ways to slow down short-term global warming is to drastically reduce methane emissions, notably through repairing leaks and discharges from oil and gas activities. Two European satellites confirmed the observations made by the NASA satellite.
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