TULA: Scientists in specialized vans and planes will be surveying the skies over the Four Corners this month to learn more about a mysterious methane bloom.
In a packed lecture hall at San Juan College on Friday, researchers from the University of Colorado, University of Michigan, the National Oceanographic Atmospheric Administration, and NASA presented data on the local climate phenomenon and their plans to study it.
The recently discovered methane hot spot is the largest recorded in the U.S. and centers on the Colorado-New Mexico border in La Plata and San Juan counties, respectively.
Methane is a natural and manmade greenhouse gas that is a contributor to global warming and smog.
The localized anomaly was revealed in a 2014 study by scientists analyzing climate data collected between 2003 and 2009 from the European SCIAMACHY satellite, which went out of service in 2012.
Eric Kort, a climate expert from the University of Michigan, specializes in greenhouse gases and was the lead author of the study. He explained that methane is of particular concern because, like CO2, it is a greenhouse gas, but its emissions are much more potent than CO2.
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