Quantifying methane emissions from the largest oil-producing basin in the United States from space

Science Advances, vol. 6, pp. eaaz5120

Abstract

, representing the largest methane flux ever reported from a U.S. oil/gas-producing region and are more than two times higher than bottom-up inventory-based estimates. This magnitude of emissions is 3.7% of the gross gas extracted in the Permian, i.e., ~60% higher than the national average leakage rate. The high methane leakage rate is likely contributed by extensive venting and flaring, resulting from insufficient infrastructure to process and transport natural gas. This work demonstrates a high-resolution satellite data-based atmospheric inversion framework, providing a robust top-down analytical tool for quantifying and evaluating subregional methane emissions.

Authors 18

1. Yuzhong Zhang corresponding

   Environmental Defense Fund · Harvard University · Westlake University

   Affiliation as printed

   Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

   Institute of Advanced Technology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China

   School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

   School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China

   Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA.; School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.; School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China

2. Ritesh Gautam corresponding

   Environmental Defense Fund

   Affiliation as printed

   Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

3. Sudhanshu Pandey Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

   Space Research Organisation Netherlands

   Affiliation as printed

   SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

4. Mark Omara

   Environmental Defense Fund

   Affiliation as printed

   Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

5. Joannes D. Maasakkers Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

   Space Research Organisation Netherlands

   Affiliation as printed

   SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

6. Pankaj Sadavarte Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

   Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research · Space Research Organisation Netherlands

   Affiliation as printed

   SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

   TNO, Department of Climate, Air and Sustainability, Utrecht, Netherlands

   SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands.; TNO, Department of Climate, Air and Sustainability, Utrecht, Netherlands

7. David Richard Lyon

   Environmental Defense Fund

   Affiliation as printed

   Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

8. Hannah O. Nesser

   Harvard University

   Affiliation as printed

   School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

9. Melissa Payer Sulprizio

   Harvard University

   Affiliation as printed

   School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

10. Daniel J. Varon

    Harvard University

    Affiliation as printed

    School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

11. Ruixiong Zhang

    Georgia Institute of Technology

    Affiliation as printed

    ClimaCell Inc., 280 Summer Street Floor 8, Boston, MA 02210, USA

    School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA

    ClimaCell Inc., 280 Summer Street Floor 8, Boston, MA 02210, USA.; School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA

12. Sander Houweling Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

    Space Research Organisation Netherlands · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Earth Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands

    SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

    Department of Earth Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands.; SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

13. Daniel Zavala‐Araiza

    Environmental Defense Fund · Utrecht University

    Affiliation as printed

    Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

    Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht (IMAU), Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands

    Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA.; Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht (IMAU), Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands

14. Ramón A. Alvarez

    Environmental Defense Fund

    Affiliation as printed

    Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

15. Alba Lorente Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

    Space Research Organisation Netherlands

    Affiliation as printed

    SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

16. Steven P. Hamburg

    Environmental Defense Fund

    Affiliation as printed

    Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC 20009, USA

17. Ilse Aben Aachen SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

    Space Research Organisation Netherlands

    Affiliation as printed

    SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht, Netherlands

18. Daniel J. Jacob

    Harvard University

    Affiliation as printed

    School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA