New look for ground-breaking UK-led ESA mission to detect climate change

TRUTHS, which stands for Traceable Radiometry Underpinning Terrestrial- and Helio- Studies, will provide a gold standard reference for satellites observing the Earth, Moon and Sun.

Conceived by the UK's National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and funded by the UK Space Agency, TRUTHS is being developed by the European Space Agency (ESA). The satellite will be built by the UK space industry led by Airbus UK, along with partners across Europe, including Greece, Switzerland, Romania and Czech Republic, who have also provided funding for the mission.

Beth Greenaway, Head of Earth Observation and Climate at the UK Space Agency, said: The UK-led TRUTHS mission is making significant progress and we can now unveil more details about what it will actually look like. The mission will play a vital role in improving how we monitor climate change using satellite data and support the decisive climate action which global nations are negotiating at COP26.

The ground-breaking mission will create a 'climate and calibration observatory in space' which will reduce uncertainty in the Earth observing data and will set a new benchmark to detect change in Earth's climate system. It will build confidence in climate action providing an enabling element of a Space-based climate observing system tied unequivocally to international standards.

In addition to providing this benchmark climate data, its orbit allows its measurements to be directly compared with other missions when their orbit crosses, as shown in the new material released this week.

Dominique Gillieron, Head of the Earth Observation Research Mission at the European Space Agency said: Building on its experience of multiple previous Earth Observation missions, ESA leads the preparation phase of TRUTHS mission towards its final endorsement by end of 2022 at the ESA ministerial conference. TRUTHS will be a perfect complement to the current planned Earth Observation missions providing unprecedented radiometric accuracy.

When there is uncertainty in data it is difficult to make decisions. This is especially true for climate as very detailed resolutions and long-term records are needed to determine a climate change signal above the natural variability in the weather and climate. TRUTHS is providing the confidence to allow both existing and new missions data to be harmonised and used to make trusted decisions related to climate adaptation and mitigation strategies. It will provide the reference point to help assess progress of these actions and their impact on society.

The early design phase of the TRUTHS mission has been validated; an important milestone achieved by the TRUTHS consortium as they now move to the detailed design phase.

TRUTHS will provide information, which will be of specific importance to the global south and areas where the in-situ, ground-based infrastructure is most challenging and difficult to provide reliable information, and where remote sensing facilitates are crucial to ensuring a rapid response to adapt.

Professor Nigel Fox, UK TRUTHS Mission Scientist, NPL said: TRUTHS meets calls from the world's satellite and climate community for robust high accuracy SI traceability. A recent publication from the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites has highlighted the urgency for improved accuracy of observations from space, to help ensure our actions are having the desired impact.

Although TRUTHS is led by the UK its outcomes and objectives are truly global in nature. As the satellite moves through these important phases, many of those who will eventually benefit from the data may only just be starting school and I hope missions like TRUTHS will inspire them to pursue careers in this exciting sector.

Justin Byrne Head of Earth Observation and Science at Airbus Defence and Space UK said: TRUTHS is an important mission as it will provide the gold standard of calibration for space-based Earth observation - a kind of 'standards laboratory in space'. With TRUTHS we also have the opportunity to further develop important areas of industrial capabilities across the UK space sector.

--SPACE STORY- eo TDSDED https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/ESA_and_GHGSat_support_new_International_Methane_Emissions_Observatory 255 23-DEC-49 ESA and GHGSat support new International Methane Emissions Observatory ESA and GHGSat support new International Methane Emissions Observatory ghgsat-c1-marker-hg.jpg ghgsat-c1-marker-lg.jpg ghgsat-c1-marker-bg.jpg ghgsat-c1-marker-sm.jpg The new initiative builds on the success of long-term and evolving data-sharing partnership between ESA and GHGSat, through the Canada-ESA Cooperation Agreement. Having proved the concept of high-resolution emissions monitoring from space, GHGSat launched its commercial constellation in 2019, rapidly building its capability and data archive. GHGSat initiative at ESA
by Staff Writers Paris (ESA) Nov 04, 2021 In the first 20 years of reaching the atmosphere, methane has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide. Reducing emissions of this extremely potent gas is, therefore, one of the fastest ways of slowing the rate of global warming, at least in the short term - and at COP26, more than 100 countries have just signed up to the Global Methane Pledge, which aims to limit emissions by 30% compared with 2020 levels.

With both public and commercial satellite data playing key roles in assessing progress on climate action, ESA and GHGSat are supporting the United Nations Environment Programme's new International Methane Emissions Observatory, also announced at COP26.

Launched at the recent G20 Rome meeting, the International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO), will provide authoritative support to governments as they work to achieve their emissions reduction targets. IMEO's first annual report - An Eye on Methane - highlights the importance of having both public and private Earth observation measurements as part of their data ecosystem.

ESA's Acting Director of Earth Observation Programmes, Toni Tolker-Nielsen, commented, "ESA marks the launch of UNEP's first annual report and commits to continued provision of regular global greenhouse-gas concentration measurements for global transparency. GHGSat's contribution of data to the IMEO is an important milestone as the first commercial contribution to the IMEO, a welcome step forward for getting best value from public and private Earth observation satellites."

UNEP's lead on methane emission, Manfredi Caltagirone, commented, "The integration of satellite data such as from the ESA-operated Copernicus Sentinel-5P and GHGSat, with company reports and scientific studies will better target mitigation actions at the scale and speed required to meet the 1.5 target.

"Reducing methane emissions from fossil fuel production is essential to avoiding the worst effects of climate change and we thank the Canadian Government for providing access to GHGSat data. IMEO looks forward to engaging with the Canadian Government as well as oil and gas companies in the future."

The new initiative builds on the success of long-term and evolving data-sharing partnership between ESA and GHGSat, through the Canada-ESA Cooperation Agreement. Having proved the concept of high-resolution emissions monitoring from space, GHGSat launched its commercial constellation in 2019, rapidly building its capability and data archive.

A Memorandum of Intent, between ESA, the Canadian Space Agency and GHGSat was signed that same year, with the aim of stimulating scientific uptake of this unique dataset.

GHGSat CEO, Stephane Germain said, "We are glad to be ready today with Earth observation data that contributes to our collective understanding of industrial methane emissions. We believe this data will provide unique insights to help with the IMEO's important work. We look forward to continued collaboration with ESA and deeper collaboration with IMEO to integrate public and private data to support emissions mitigation."

President of the Canadian Space Agency, Lisa Campbell, noted, "GHGSat's early efforts to build a previously unimagined commercial capability have come together at a time when urgent climate action is essential. GHGSat's contribution of Canadian commercial data and know-how to IMEO builds on the achievement of scientific and operational collaboration."

Also, emphasising the need to work together to mitigate the effects of climate change, a report by the Group on Earth Observations, the Climate TRACE consortium, and the World Geospatial Industry Council was launched at COP26. The Greenhouse Gas Monitoring from Space: A mapping of capabilities across public, private and hybrid satellite missions report and the database that underpins it is the first?joint?systematic effort by?Earth observation data providers from the public and private sectors to map?the current and upcoming?satellite?missions that monitor greenhouse gases. Both Copernicus Sentinel-5P and GHGSat feature in the report.

GHGSat
GHGSat is a leader in high-resolution greenhouse gas monitoring from space, providing actionable emission data to businesses, governments, and regulators worldwide. With proprietary remote-sensing capabilities and patented technology, GHGSat can monitor individual facilities, offering greater data accuracy, and facilitating timely strategic decision-making insights. The GHGSat archive and data from the joint ESA, CSA, GHGSat initiative can be accessed on ESA's Earth Online website.

Copernicus Sentinel-5P
Copernicus Sentinel-5P is the first Copernicus mission dedicated to monitoring our atmosphere. The satellite carries the state-of-the-art Tropomi instrument to map a multitude of trace gases, which affect the air we breathe and therefore our health and our climate.

Related Links
UK Space Agency
Earth Observation News - Suppiliers, Technology and Application

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UK and France reach new agreement on climate change mission
London, UK (SPX) Nov 03, 2021
The UK Space Agency has provided new funding for a joint British and French MicroCarb mission dedicated to monitoring atmospheric carbon dioxide - the main greenhouse gas responsible for climate change. Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency, and Laurence Monnoyer-Smith, Director of Sustainable Development of the French space agency, CNES, signed an implementation arrangement for the MicroCarb mission at COP26 - the United Nations climate change conference being hosted by the UK in G ... read more