Image: CSU/CIRA and NOAA/NESDIS ( Public domain )
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What it is
MethaneSAT was a purpose-built methane-monitoring satellite developed by MethaneSAT LLC (Environmental Defense Fund affiliate), launched 4 March 2024 on SpaceX. It was designed to quantify total methane over wide oil-and-gas regions: including dispersed sources other sensors struggle to total, and to publish free, comparable basin analytics.
Problem it targets
Methane reported by factors, not measured over whole basins
How it works
A wide-swath spectrometer retrieved column methane at high native resolution; atmospheric inversions turned those columns into area emission rates (~4 km cells) and basin totals. Public releases cover more than 221 scenes across 45 regions (~half of global onshore oil-and-gas production). Mission science continues in the literature (for example the ACP 2026 basin analysis).
Status and players
Global targeting of major basins (Permian, Eagle Ford, San Joaquin, Central Asia, Middle East, and others). System-wide public summary (February 2026): measured oil-and-gas methane ~50% higher than EDGAR / EPA-style inventories in the basins assessed; no measured basin met the OGDC 0.2% intensity goal.
Risks and limits
On-orbit anomaly, then loss of contact on 20 June 2025 (avionics or electrical-power subsystem: root cause not uniquely identified). This card is about the 2024-2025 mission and its open data and science, not a claim of ongoing daily global methane operations. Pair it with ground leak detection for site fixes. Intensities and inventories disagree for many reasons; one paper is not a court verdict.
Sources
MethaneSAT launch page, system-wide view (February 2026), and anomaly investigation; Varon et al., Atmos. Chem. Phys. 26, 5961-5980 (2026). One paper is not a court verdict.