Carbon monoxide emissions over central South America, September 2024

This image shows carbon monoxide data observed by the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite over South America in September 2024.

See here for a comparison between the Sentinel-5P data and fire emission estimates from the operational Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) Global Fire Assimilation System (GFAS).

Carbon monoxide is easier for satellites to detect than carbon dioxide, making it a useful proxy for estimating wildfire carbon emissions.

The dataset is presented in a paper in Geophysical Research Letters. The results of the study suggest that current scientific methods significantly underestimate carbon emissions, with actual carbon output potentially between 1.5 and three times higher.

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