Methane emission estimates for North America derived from an inversion of the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model constrained by GOSAT satellite observations. The data provides daily Level 4 flux estimates for 12 distinct emission sectors. This product was produced by the NASA Carbon Monitoring System (CMS) and distributed via GES DISC, with a last update recorded in 2011.
Use Cases
- Analyze spatial and temporal patterns of methane flux from the 'Oil/Gas' sector to identify emission hotspots.
- Compare emission magnitudes between anthropogenic sectors like 'Coal', 'Waste', and 'Biofuel' against natural sources like 'Wetlands'.
- Validate regional atmospheric models using the gridded 'Total' methane flux estimates as a benchmark.
- Investigate the contribution of 'Cows' and 'Rice' agriculture to the overall methane budget in North America.
- Assess interannual variability in 'Biomass Burning' and 'Soil Absorption' fluxes using the daily time-series data.
Strengths
- Sector-specific flux breakdown across 12 distinct categories including 'Total', 'Oil/Gas', and 'Wetlands'.
- Data derived from a nested inversion approach designed to resolve large point sources and minimize aggregation errors.
- Product is part of the NASA Carbon Monitoring System, designed to support policy with quantified uncertainties.
Limitations
- Temporal coverage ends in 2011, making the data over a decade old and potentially not reflective of current emissions.
- Specific sample size, resolution, and error statistics are not provided in the available description.
- Coverage is limited to North America, preventing global comparative analysis.
Provenance
- Source
- NASA Carbon Monitoring System (CMS), distributed by GES DISC.
- Collection Method
- Inversion of the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model constrained by Greenhouse Gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT) observations.
- Time Range
- null
- Freshness
- Last updated 2011-12-31; update frequency is null.
- Geography
- North America.