Along with general uses for satellites, they are used to understand carbon dioxide atmospheric concentrations in our planet’s atmosphere. Satellites remote sensing technology is advancing, helping us detect dangers and come up with timely solutions to challenges. But why does CO2 pose danger?
Carbon is a natural gas found in our atmosphere. It is a by-product of a natural carbon cycle. But why is CO2 concentration increasing in recent years? According to satellite data, this happens because carbon is emitted as a result of all industrial work and other economic activity undertaken by humans.
But why do we feel the necessity of gauging CO2 concentration in Earth’s atmosphere? Because since the first human civilizations started forming, CO2 levels are currently at their highest.
Back in 2013, Carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere went over 400 parts per million for the first time. Satellite data shows that if this trend continues at such a pace, we will see glaciers start melting at the poles and global average temperatures rising thousand times.
Measuring Carbon Dioxide from Space
Trying to understand carbon concentrations in our planet’s atmosphere using satellites revolving around Earth is a fairly new thing. NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 is the first of its kind, which was deployed to understand CO2 concentrations in Earth’s atmosphere using data obtained from satellites.
One of the primary objectives of this satellites’ mission is to evaluate 100,000 different measurements every single day with hopes of developing a fully-fledged map of carbon dioxide sources from where it exits the atmosphere.
As recent satellite data show, of total CO2 emissions a year, more than half gets trapped inside the atmosphere, which is a very bad sign. And then we have oceans that work as a sink for the global CO2 cycle. Satellites report that a big portion of CO2 that gets trapped inside Earth, finds its way into the Sea.
So, that is a good thing, right? As 70% of our planet’s surface is water, we can heavily rely on our oceans to naturally recycle and absorb the increasing amount of CO2. Still, there are both advantages and disadvantages.
As sea waters absorb more CO2, they become more acidic. As a result, the entire ocean ecosystem is getting damaged.
Can we rely on NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 and its satellites to find an accurate picture of the CO2 distribution in Earth’s atmosphere?
Well, we can say that studies from satellites geostationary data are more accurate than data from ground station-based observatories. Another great drawback of previous attempts to measure CO2 without satellites is that ground stations could not give us solid data on CO2 sources.
Human Contribution to Atmospheric CO2
Is it fair to say that people are the biggest contributor to CO2? According to an estimate, human activity can be attributed to the 40% rise in overall CO2 concentration in our atmosphere. Current CO2 levels in the atmosphere are more than 33.33% higher than what they were at the initial stages of industrialization and the advent of fossil fuel, as captured by satellite data.
Due to CO2 increase in the atmosphere, along with carbon dioxide in atmosphere effects, we are experiencing blazing heat waves all across the globe. According to satellite data, global temperatures have already risen by 0.6-degrees Celsius.
Satellite data shows that a warmer planet can significantly change the way we know our home. Natural animal habitats on Earth might change; natural flow of water through rivers and creeks will see significant changes; groundwater levels will further drop. And lastly, we will have to withstand further adverse climates, all due to an increasing amount of CO2 in our atmosphere.
But there are some contradicting satellite findings as well. CO2 molecules, once released into our planet’s atmosphere, can stay there for centuries. If this is true, people should not be blamed for an ever-increasing amount of CO2 in our atmosphere.
According to another satellite estimate, human contribution to overall CO2 levels might only be three parts per million to the entire amount. So what is the solution? How can we find out the actual human contribution to the increasing CO2 level in our atmosphere?
The answer is pretty simple. There is another by-product of fossil fuel combustion other than CO2 — which is Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2).
We can study NO2 percentages in our planet’s atmosphere with satellites and get a better understanding of how much green gas is a direct result of human activity.
Verdict
As we have seen, human activity is the cause of over 40 billion tons of CO2 being emitted into our planet’s atmosphere. On the bright side, earth monitoring satellites help scientists keep track of any changes and potentially damaging events. Do let us know if you think satellites improve our life quality and call for more government funds to monitor carbon levels.
