Jeff Bezos' $100 million satellite got lost in space after its signal mysteriously dropped out.
The MethaneSAT satellite, which had the strong support of a $100 million grant from the Amazon founder's Earth Fund and backing from Google, has gone silent after just over a year in operation.
The $88 million (£65 million) satellite was designed to detect releases of the greenhouse gas methane from oil and gas production.
It was equipped with advanced spectrometers that could identify methane emissions even at extremely low concentrations across vast geographical areas.
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The project was a collaboration between space technology and climate science, with the goal of collecting environmental data for five years to help combat one of the most potent drivers of climate change.
Now, Bezos' MethaneSAT has stopped transmitting data and was last recorded over Norway.
Launched only last year aboard an Elon Musk SpaceX rocket, the sudden disappearance has been a major setback for climate efforts.
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According to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the US non-profit organisation that operated the satellite, the spacecraft appears to have lost power completely and it is 'likely not recoverable.'
Despite its premature end, MethaneSAT managed to gather some essential data.
“The mission has been a remarkable success in terms of scientific and technological accomplishment, and for its lasting influence on both industry and regulators worldwide,” the statement read. “Thanks to MethaneSAT, we have gained critical insight about the distribution and volume of methane being released from oil and gas production areas.
It continued: “We have also developed an unprecedented capability to interpret the measurements from space and translate them into volumes of methane released. This capacity will be valuable to other missions.”
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Methane presents a unique challenge for climate scientists because while it's an extremely potent greenhouse gas - it is much more effective at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. It's also difficult to track accurately from ground-based monitoring systems.
Reports estimate that methane emissions account for nearly one-third of human-induced global warming. In some areas, the satellite detected methane concentrations that were 10 times higher than official estimates.
“MethaneSAT has produced remarkable data,” project lead Steven Hamburg wrote in a LinkedIn post. “MethaneSAT is ushering in a new era of transparency and problem-solving... The mission is ambitious, and space missions are challenging. But the climate can’t wait, and neither can we.”
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The EDF has not ruled out the possibility of launching another satellite to continue MethaneSAT's work.