Advanced New Camera Can Measure Greenhouse Gases
December 9, 2015 | Linköping UniversityEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
A camera so advanced that it can photograph and film methane in the air around us is now presented by a team of researchers from Linköping and Stockholm Universities. It can be an important part of the efforts to measure and monitor greenhouse gases.
There are several questions surrounding the powerful greenhouse gas methane. Its rapid but irregular increase in the atmosphere has puzzled researchers. And there is a high degree of uncertainty with regard to the sources and sinks of methane in the landscape. A newly developed camera from Linköping University and Stockholm University can help to address these issues. The utility of the camera to both photograph and film methane has been demonstrated in a study that was recently published in Nature Climate Change.
”The camera is very sensitive, which means that the methane is both visible and measureable close to ground level, with much higher resolution than previously. Being able to measure on a small scale is crucial,” says Magnus Gålfalk, Assistant Professor at Tema Environmental Change, Linköping University who led the study.bastviken
The advanced hyperspectral infrared camera weighs 30 kilos and measures 50 x 45 x 25 centimeters. It is optimized to measure the same radiation that methane absorbs and which makes methane such a powerful greenhouse gas. The camera can be used to measure emissions from many environments including sewage sludge deposits, combustion processes, animal husbandry and lakes. For each pixel in the image the camera records a high-resolution spectrum, which makes it possible to quantify the methane separately from the other gases.
The camera was developed by a team that combined knowledge from many different fields of expertise, including astronomy, biogeochemistry, engineering and environmental sciences.
“This gives us new possibibastvikenlities for mapping and monitoring methane sources and sinks, and it will help us understand how methane emissions are regulated and how we can reduce emissions. So far the camera has been used from the ground and now we’re working to make it airborn for more large-scale methane mapping,” says David Bastviken, professor at Tema Environmental Change, Linköping University and the principal investigator on the project.
Professor Bastviken emphasises that the project would not have been possible without funding for methodological development from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation and the Swedish Research Council, VR.
In addition to Magnus Gålfalk and David Bastviken from Linköping University, Professors Göran Olofsson and Patrick Crill from Stockholm University contributed to the project.
Suggested Items
Flex Announces Upcoming Changes to Its Board of Directors
05/07/2024 | FlexFlex announced that consistent with its succession plan, Michael D. Capellas, non-executive Chair of the Board of Directors of Flex, has informed the Board of his decision not to stand for re-election to the Board at the company's 2024 Annual General Meeting of shareholders to be held on August 8, 2024. Mr. Capellas has served on the company's board for 10 years, including as Chair since 2017, during which time he played a key role in building Flex's reputation as a trusted global technology, supply chain and manufacturing solutions partner and driving the company's success.
Europlacer Presents New Range of iineo SMT Placement Machines.
05/01/2024 | EuroplacerFor more than 15 years, the Europlacer iineo placement machines have made their mark on the SMT industry with unique features and unrivalled flexibility. Today, Europlacer announces the launch of the second generation iineo.
Incap US Hosts Annual Food Drive
04/30/2024 | IncapIncap US recently concluded its annual food drive, a tradition aimed at supporting the Greater Washington County Food Bank. This year marked the fourth year of the initiative, and we couldn’t be prouder of the collective effort that was made to its success.
Scanfil Uses Employee Engagement Survey to Improve
04/30/2024 | ScanfilOnce a year Scanfil arranges Employee Engagement Survey (EES) in order to get valuable insight from its employees. In EES all employees are invited to share their opinion, bring ideas for improvements, and contribute to making Scanfil a better place to work.
epoxySet Introduces EO-20E – Versatile, Electrically Conductive Epoxy
04/29/2024 | epoxySetepoxySet produces EPOXIOHM EO-20E an industry established, reliable electrically conductive epoxy designed for solder replacement, chip bonding and other intricate electronic and optoelectronic assemblies. This creamy paste has a an easy to use 1:1 mix ratio with a 48 hour work time.