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Schwandner FM, Gunson MR, Miller CE, Carn SA, Eldering A, Krings T, Verhulst KR, Schimel DS, Nguyen HM, Crisp D, O'Dell CW, Osterman GB, Iraci LT, Podolske JR. Spaceborne detection of localized carbon dioxide sources. Science 2018; 358:358/6360/eaam5782. [PMID: 29026015 DOI: 10.1126/science.aam5782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2016] [Accepted: 07/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Spaceborne measurements by NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) at the kilometer scale reveal distinct structures of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) caused by known anthropogenic and natural point sources. OCO-2 transects across the Los Angeles megacity (USA) show that anthropogenic CO2 enhancements peak over the urban core and decrease through suburban areas to rural background values more than ~100 kilometers away, varying seasonally from ~4.4 to 6.1 parts per million. A transect passing directly downwind of the persistent isolated natural CO2 plume from Yasur volcano (Vanuatu) shows a narrow filament of enhanced CO2 values (~3.4 parts per million), consistent with a CO2 point source emitting 41.6 kilotons per day. These examples highlight the potential of the OCO-2 sensor, with its unprecedented resolution and sensitivity, to detect localized natural and anthropogenic CO2 sources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian M Schwandner
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA. .,Joint Institute for Regional Earth System Science and Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Michael R Gunson
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Charles E Miller
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Simon A Carn
- Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA
| | - Annmarie Eldering
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Thomas Krings
- Institute of Environmental Physics, University of Bremen, 28334 Bremen, Germany
| | - Kristal R Verhulst
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA.,Joint Institute for Regional Earth System Science and Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - David S Schimel
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Hai M Nguyen
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - David Crisp
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Christopher W O'Dell
- Department of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Gregory B Osterman
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Laura T Iraci
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
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