back to article NASA plots methane-detecting laser in SPAAACE

NASA is working on a laser-based instrument it hopes will be able to take flight to measure atmospheric concentrations of important greenhouse gas methane. The work is being led by Goddard Space Flight Center scientist Haris Riris, who collaborated with Jim Abshire of Goddard in developing the CO2 Sounder Lidar (light …

  1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

    Politics

    And depending who wins in 2 years it will be moth balled

    1. MrDamage Silver badge

      Re: Politics

      Of course it will be mothballed. Given the amount of bullshit emenating from places of government, do you think they want the peons to know they are one of the biggest contributors to grennhouse gasses?

    2. JamesTQuirk

      Re: Politics

      COP20: Global Arctic Methane Emergency #2 (12-5-2014 in Lima Peru)

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQkNxuQ0DoI

      Dr Jennifer Francis - Arctic Sea Ice, Jet Stream & Climate Change

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAiA-_iQjdU

      A little from Column A & a little from Column B, Personally I think it's about survival, and rising methane in atmosphere disrupting Gulf Stream ....

  2. Martin Budden Silver badge
    Coat

    Is there a laser which can detect the presence of methane-producing cows in the atmosphere (presumably mid-jump over the moon)? First we'll assume a spherical cow...

  3. Mark 85

    Population control may very well be in this world's future....

    7+ billion people plus livestock to feed them and all putting out CO2 and methane.. Not to mention power (electric, autos, etc.) I do wonder how long before the extreme nutcases get some power and attention and start weaning the population back? Far-fetched? No more far-fetched than some of the control measures I've heard in the last 5 years or so.

    So maybe we don't really want to know how bad it is.....

  4. Little Mouse
    Mushroom

    Using a laser to find methane?

    Is that like looking for the gas leak in your house with a lit match?

  5. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Thumb Up

    building new hardware to find the second most common cause of AGW.

    Excellent.

    More data collection, less "extrapolation."

    Perhaps this will explain why the temperature rise all models have AFAIK predicted is not, in fact, happening?

    Beyond the obvious fact all models are wrong.

    1. strum

      Re: building new hardware to find the second most common cause of AGW.

      >Beyond the obvious fact all models are wrong.

      Science is a model - all of it. So, you're saying that the whole of science is wrong?

      1. John Smith 19 Gold badge
        Facepalm

        Re: building new hardware to find the second most common cause of AGW.

        "Science is a model - all of it. So, you're saying that the whole of science is wrong?"

        Given the context of the discussion that would be a General Circulation Model of the atmosphere and the oceans.

        But for the more stupid I will make it explicit as well.

        I was referring to GCM's. none of which report a temperature plateau and all predict higher CO2 --> higher temperature.

        1. NomNomNom

          Re: building new hardware to find the second most common cause of AGW.

          there is no temperature plateau

  6. AbelSoul
    Headmaster

    Stop that, it's silly.

    ... a mission like the Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Nights, Days and Seasons (ASCENDS).

    These painfully laboured and absurdly tenuous acronyms seem to be getting sillier and sillier.

    This one in particular is:

    Painful

    Imprecise

    Stupid and

    Hollow

    1. Sir Sham Cad

      Re: Stop that, it's silly.

      It is particularly cringeworthy and you can see they've just given up and gone "sod it, that's close enough".

      The MERLIN one, though, just doesn't work at all.

    2. JamesTQuirk

      Re: Stop that, it's silly.

      Or like Earth having a "RUD" event ?

  7. imanidiot Silver badge

    Screw the methane and all that

    they are going to test it on a DC-8!!! A jet that has been out of production for 43 years! Those old low bypass jets probably put out enough polution to raise global temperatures all bij themselves. Atleast get something a LITTLE more modern...

  8. Primus Secundus Tertius

    Water, water, everywhere...

    The most important greenhouse gas is water vapour, the result of the sun shining on the oceans.

    What are the greenies going to do about that?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Water, water, everywhere...

      Why? Is there evidence that the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere is increasing? The issue with CO2 is not that it exists in our atmosphere, it is that the level of CO2 has been rising dramatically in the last 100 years or so.

      1. Werner McGoole

        Re: Water, water, everywhere...

        I think it's a basic assumption in climate models that water vapour concentrations are increasing. The thinking is that as temperature rises, so the atmosphere holds more water. It's a positive feedback effect.

        But the increased water vapour also allows the atmosphere to transport heat from the earth's surface to the upper atmosphere more efficiently, where it's radiated into space.* That's a cooling effect and therefore a negative feedback.

        Both these effects are quite strong. So the net effect depends a lot on getting your model for water vapour correct. That rarely seems to get discussed, but it's quite important and complicated, what with clouds and stuff being involved.

        *The radiation absorbed by CO2 has never been able to reach space from ground level (the greenhouse effect is a dumbed down explanation for the masses). The atmosphere is optically thick at these wavelengths and always was. The heat is instead radiated from the top of the atmosphere and it gets up there primarily by convection.

        1. JamesTQuirk

          Re: Water, water, everywhere...

          HEAT makes all solids, liquids, Gases EXPAND .......

          Adding Lifting of WEIGHT from Greenland & Antarctica from Land Borne ICE, allowing more crustal expansion to occur, while "mass of SEA water" expands from RUNOFF & HEAT EXPANSION, Which allows things like Calthrates Melting (thermal expansion), releasing Methane Gas ....

          Lot's of FUN to come ....

          Ancient Chinese Curse : May you be born in interesting times .....

          I Think it's one we all have to deal with ...

          1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

            Re: Water, water, everywhere...

            "Ancient Chinese Curse : May you be born in interesting times ....."

            Live, not born. And your CAPS lock key APPEARS to be randomly STICKING for arbitrary durATIONS.

            1. JamesTQuirk

              Re: Water, water, everywhere...

              Maybe, or I been sending TXT's to long & Abbrev. everything, highlight the important, but phukup a lot because I am on a Phone typing it ... MY Sony Xperia S 2core is running Unbuntu, so I used it to message .... Sometimes like now, I am using a Keyboard ...

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