MethaneSAT

MethaneSAT is a satellite-based methane monitoring mission developed and operated by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), one of the world's leading environmental non-profit organizations. The project was publicly introduced by EDF President Fred Krupp at a TED Talk in 2018 and was created to close a critical gap in global methane monitoring: unlike other satellites that focus on large point-source leaks, MethaneSAT was purpose-built to detect and quantify the smaller, widespread emission sources that make up more than 70% of oil and gas methane emissions worldwide.

The MethaneSAT satellite launched in March 2024 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and began providing high-resolution emissions data across major oil and gas producing basins globally. The mission is operated in partnership with Harvard University's science team and a network of research institutions, with data made freely available to companies, investors, governments, scientists, and the public through a web-based data portal, Google Earth Engine, and Google Cloud. The organization's leadership includes Dr. Steven Hamburg, MethaneSAT Project Lead and EDF Chief Scientist, and Dr. Makenzie Lystrup, Chief Technology Officer for Science and Innovation and former director of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

During its first year of operation, MethaneSAT data revealed that overall oil and gas methane emissions were roughly 50% higher than official inventories had reported, and demonstrated the measurable impact of regulation by showing that regulated fields in New Mexico emitted significantly less methane than unregulated operations in neighboring Texas. The mission's core goal is to make near-zero methane emissions the standard in the oil and gas industry through transparent, comprehensive, and independently verified emissions data.

MethaneSAT's work is funded by major philanthropic supporters including the Bezos Earth Fund, The Audacious Project, the New Zealand Space Agency, and the Valhalla Foundation. In 2025 the original satellite lost communications, and the MethaneSAT team has since been exploring replacement approaches, including aircraft-based measurement campaigns and the development of a new satellite, to continue its mission of tracking and reducing methane emissions worldwide.