NASA’s Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT) mission is mapping the prevalence of key minerals in the planet’s dust-producing deserts information that will advance our understanding of airborne dust’s effects on climate. But EMIT has demonstrated another capability: detecting the presence of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. In the data.
Built to help scientists understand how dust affects climate, the Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation can also pinpoint emissions of the potent greenhouse gas.
This image shows a 2-mile (3-kilometer) long plume of methane southeast of Carlsbad, New Mexico. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that is much more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
Built to help scientists understand how dust affects climate, the Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation can also pinpoint emissions of the potent greenhouse gas.
Measurements from EMIT, the Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation, will improve computer simulations researchers use to understand climate change.