First Light Images Released From the Carbon Mapper Coalition Tanager-1 Satellite
Published on: Sep 24, 2024
Today, through collaboration with the Carbon Mapper Coalition, Planet Labs released the first hyperspectral images from the Tanager-1 satellite.
This first light comes just over one month after the August 16th launch of Tanager-1 onboard Transporter-11. The satellite is developed and operated by Planet Labs with technology from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
Tanager-1 is the first of a series of satellites being developed and deployed through a unique public-private partnership powered by philanthropy and led by Carbon Mapper. The first light images showcase only a fraction of the satellite’s hyperspectral capabilities, which is expected to provide data across over 400 spectral channels. This capability will unlock a range of environmental and biodiversity insights, including unprecedented granularity on methane super-emitters. Through data generated through these satellite observations, Carbon Mapper will help fill gaps in society’s current understanding of human-caused methane and CO2 emissions and drive mitigation action. Ultimately, Carbon Mapper’s goal is to provide sustained monitoring of up to 90% of methane and CO2 super-emitters globally.
View Planet’s full release here.
This is an exciting milestone as Planet Labs and Carbon Mapper continue the commissioning process.
Once Tanager-1 is ready to regularly deliver observations, Carbon Mapper will make methane and CO2 data and insights available for noncommercial use 30 days after detection on our public data portal, which currently has thousands of high emissions sources observed by air and space. Access to this data empowers facility operators, governments, nonprofits, journalists, communities, and researchers to find and fix leaks, quickly diagnose root causes of emissions, inform mitigation solutions, and verify reductions. Planet will also make early-access data commercially available.