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Objectives and Applications
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The GeoCarb mission provides persistent daytime measurements from a geostationary orbit (85° West +/- 10°) of the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO), and it also provides measurements of solar-induced fluorescence (SIF). By measuring daily over the Americans (55° N/S Latitude) CO2, CH4, and CO concentrations and SIF under changing conditions at fine spatial scales roughly (5kmx5km), GeoCarb enables determination of major anthropogenic sources of CO2 and CH4 and breakthrough investigations of their natural sources and sinks. This provides the basis for a transformational improvement in our understanding of the carbon cycle, and it demonstrates an effective approach to monitoring CO2 and CH4, the two most important greenhouse gasses that is synergistic with measurements from Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
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