Mexican state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos released thousands of tons of methane gas into the atmosphere from an oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico last December, research published on Thursday by the European Space Agency (ESA) showed.
Researchers led by Itziar Irakulis Loitxate from the Polytechnic University of Valencia calculated about 4,000 tons of methane were released during that time.
The Gulf of Mexico leak is likely a result of "abnormal process conditions at the site" like malfunctions or equipment issues, researchers concluded."These are the first detections made from satellites," Irakulis Loitxate told Reuters. "Without the monitoring approach described in the paper, similar events would remain invisible and unaccounted."
Methane is much more powerful at trapping heat than carbon dioxide but only lasts in the atmosphere for about a decade.
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