Copernicus launches tool to track methane emissions
The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) has launched the Methane Hotspot Explorer app, a new tool designed to track and visualize methane (CH₄) plumes in near real-time while identifying their potential sources, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
Developed by SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, the app combines satellite data from TROPOMI—an instrument on the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite—with machine learning techniques and expert verification.
Users can monitor methane emissions on daily to 14-day time scales and distinguish between sources such as coal mining, oil, gas, urban landfills, and even unexpected sources like natural events. The app recently detected large CH₄ emissions from Ethiopia’s Mount Fentale volcano on 31 January, marking the first such volcanic methane event observed by TROPOMI.
Richard Engelen, Deputy Director of CAMS, stated: “The Methane Hotspot Explorer is a new CAMS contribution to understanding the role of human activity in the ever-growing greenhouse gas emissions scenario. It represents a significant step in the ramping up of the new Copernicus Greenhouse Gas Emissions Monitoring and Verification Support capacity (CO2MVS), which will allow us to routinely monitor anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions globally and locally using a combination of observations and Earth system modeling.”
Bram Maasakkers, senior scientist at SRON, emphasized its role in emission mitigation: “Developing the instrumentation and methods to detect these methane plumes is just the first step in mitigating emissions. The launch of the Methane Explorer is a vital next step, bringing transparency of large emissions around the world to policy makers and the general public.”
The tool also helps identify gaps between reported greenhouse gas emissions and independent observations, supporting global transparency and accountability in climate action.
Earlier, during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP-29), it was reported that Brazil had set an ambitious goal to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 59–67% by 2035, compared to 2005 levels. The country aims to lower emissions to between 850 million and 1.05 billion metric tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per year.
