Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2023, Vol. 20, No. 6, pp. 117-128
Analysis of the possibility to calculate atmospheric greenhouse gas balance elements using modern satellite remote sensing data
I.N. Sadovsky
1 , E.V. Pashinov
1 , D.S. Sazonov
1 1 Space Research Institute RAS, Moscow, Russia
Accepted: 21.11.2023
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2023-20-6-117-128
The work is devoted to the possibility of using satellite monitoring data on concentration of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere to assess their balance for selected areas. In the most general case, the balance equation contains several key components: the external influx of matter into the selected area and the outflow from it, the change in the integral mass within the selected area (volume), the emission of matter within the area and its absorption. The difference between the last two components is of greatest interest in the problems of estimating greenhouse gas emissions within the regions of interest. It is impossible to find without assessing the horizontal transfer values that determine the relationship between the first two components of the balance equation. This problem can be solved with the availability of satellite sensing data, which must satisfy a number of requirements. These include maximum coverage area, high frequency of observations, high spatial resolution, homogeneity, and assessment of the provided data quality. The paper is devoted to consideration of these parameters, as well as the study of the possibility of using data from modern satellite systems for assessing gas composition of the atmosphere to solve the described problem. We used data currently available from the following instruments: ACE-FTS ACE-FTS (Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer), OCO-2 (Orbiting Carbon Observatory), TANSO-FTS (Thermal And Near infrared Sensor for carbon Observations — Fourier Transform Spectrometer), MOPITT (Measurement Of Pollution In The Troposphere), TROPOMI (Tropospheric Ozone-Monitoring Instrument), MLS (Microwave Limb Sounder) and OMPS (Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite). The analysis was carried out in relation to trace gas components that are, firstly, greenhouse gases, and secondly, have both natural sources and those resulting from human production activities. These include CO2, CH4, SO2 and N2O. The research has shown that, according to the set criteria, the greatest potential for solving the main problem has TROPOMI data. At the same time, the lack of declared data on CO2 and N2O, trace gas components, low coverage for CH4 and heterogeneity of SO2 data currently do not allow using the data from this instrument to solve the problem of restoring the difference between the emission and absorption of greenhouse gases. For these reasons, the authors propose testing the balance assessment technology on the results of TROPOMI measurements of carbon monoxide concentration averaged over the vertical column of the atmosphere.
Keywords: greenhouse gases, balance equation, carbon monoxide, TROPOMI, remote sensing
Full textReferences:
- Ermakov D. M., Pashinov E. V., Kuz’min A. V. et al., The concept of calculating the elements of the regional hydrological balance with the use of satellite radiothermovision, Gidrometeorologiya i ekologiya, 2023, No. 72, pp. 470–493 (in Russian), DOI: 10.33933/2713-3001-2023-72-470-492.
- Crisp D., Measuring atmospheric carbon dioxide from space with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2), Proc. SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2015, Vol. 9607, Article 960702, DOI: 10.1117/12.2187291.
- Flynn L., Seftor C., Larsen J., Xu P., The Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite, Earth Science Satellite Remote Sensing: Science and Instruments, 2006, Vol. 1, pp. 279–296, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-540-37293-6_15.
- Kaiser J. W., Heil A., Andreae M. O. et al., Biomass burning emissions estimated with a global fire assimilation system based on observed fire radiative power, Biogeosciences, 2012, No. 9, pp. 527–554, DOI: 10.5194/bg-9-527-2012.
- Karminov V., Ontikov P., Santoro M. et al., Russian forest sequesters substantially more carbon than previously reported, Scientific Reports, 2021, Vol. 11(1), Article 12825, DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-92152-9.
- Suto H., Kataoka F., Kikuchi N. et al., Thermal and near-infrared sensor for carbon observation Fourier transform spectrometer-2 (TANSO-FTS-2) on the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite-2 (GOSAT-2) during its first year in orbit, Atmospheric Measurement Techniques, 2021, Vol. 14, pp. 2013–2039, DOI: 10.5194/amt-14-2013-2021.
- Tang W., Worden H., Deeter M. et al., Assessing Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) carbon monoxide retrievals over urban versus non-urban regions, Atmospheric Measurement Techniques, 2020, Vol. 13, pp. 1337–1356, DOI: 10.5194/amt-13-1337-2020.
- Vries J., Voors R., Mika A. et al., TROPOMI, the solar backscatter satellite instrument for air quality and climate, heads towards detailed design, Sensors, Systems, and Next-Generation Satellites XIII: Proc. SPIE, 2009, Vol. 7474, 747409-4, DOI: 10.1117/12.830087.
- Walker K., Sheese P., Zou J. et al., The Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS): Mission and Validation Status, Fourier Transform Spectroscopy: Proc. Conf., 2016, DOI: 10.1364/FTS.2016.FTh4B.5.
- Waters J., Froidevaux L., Harwood R. et al., The Earth Observing System Microwave Limb Sounder (EOS MLS) on the aura satellite, IEEE Trans. Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 2006, Vol. 44, pp. 1075–1092, DOI: 10.1109/TGRS.2006.873771.