Limits of space-based remote sensing for methane source characterization

Examines the ability of a space-based instrument to identify and quantify methane sources in the presence of temperature, humidity, and albedo uncertainty. While this analysis occurs in the context of the Earth Observing System, it is not meant to reflect on the utility of the entire system. Rather, the objective is to quantify the synergistic benefit of simultaneous observation of Earth surface and atmospheric attributes in one specific context. The retrieval technique considered is linear inversion of near-IR spectral signals. The range of realistic methane mixing ratio enhancement due to anticipated source strengths is discussed as it relates to the detection limit of the space-based instrument.<>