Satellite-based greenhouse gas monitoring (CO2, methane point sources and diffuse emissions)

Climate action is happening in the dark. We're making trillion-dollar decisions about energy systems, carbon markets, and climate adaptation based on incomplete, outdated, or simply wrong information.

Most of what we think we know about emissions comes from estimates and calculations, not actual measurements. We're guessing at how much carbon forests store, how fast cities are decarbonizing, and whether our climate projects are working. Meanwhile, climate impacts are accelerating faster than our models predicted, and we need precise, real-time data to respond effectively.

This isn't just an academic problem. Investors can't tell which climate projects deliver real results. Cities can't plan infrastructure without knowing their local climate risks. Companies can't manage what they can't measure. The gap between what we need to know and what we actually know is enormous — and it's slowing down everything else.

We're running the global carbon budget on spreadsheet math. Most emissions data comes from multiplying activity levels by emission factors — like estimating a power plant's CO2 output based on how much coal it burns, rather than measuring what actually comes out of the smokestack.

This approach misses methane leaks, underestimates industrial emissions, and can't track emissions in real time. It's like trying to manage your bank account by guessing how much you spent instead of checking your balance. For climate policy and carbon markets to work, we need to know what's actually happening, not what we think is happening.

Satellites equipped with spectrometers can detect greenhouse gas concentrations from space, identifying major emission sources and tracking changes over time. This technology can spot methane leaks from oil and gas facilities, measure CO2 plumes from power plants, and monitor emissions across entire regions.

These systems provide independent verification of reported emissions and can catch unreported sources. They're particularly valuable for monitoring remote areas, tracking emissions from countries with limited ground-based monitoring, and providing transparent data for international climate agreements.