A new study by Chinese Academy of Sciences researchers finds that existing satellites severely underestimate CO₂ emissions from power plants. Analyzing 2021 data from 1,060 U.S. plants, researchers found current satellites detect only 29% of total emissions. The study recommends new satellite systems with finer resolution, higher precision, and daily monitoring to improve emission detection. These upgrades are essential for climate action and meeting global agreements like the Paris Accord.

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• Current satellites miss ~70% of power plant CO₂ emissions
• Only 29% of emissions detected by satellites in 2021 study
• Smaller plants (94% coal, 97% gas) often go undetected
• Resolution, revisit time, and precision major technical limitations
• Ground systems accurate but lack global coverage
• Study used data from 1,060 U.S. power plants
• Upgrading to 0.5 km resolution and 0.7 ppm precision reduces error <20%
• New satellites like EU’s CO2M, China’s TanSat-2 show better promise
• CO2M could detect 52%, TanSat-2 about 44% of emissions
• Accurate data key for Paris Agreement’s Global Stocktake