Quantifying NO_x point sources with Landsat and Sentinel-2 satellite observations of NO₂ plumes.

ABSTRACT: We show that the Landsat and Sentinel-2 satellites can detect NO₂ plumes from large point sources at 10 to 60 m pixel resolution in their blue and ultrablue bands. We use the resulting NO₂ plume imagery to quantify nitrogen oxides (NO_x) emission rates for several power plants in Saudi Arabia and the United States, including a 13-y analysis of 132 Landsat plumes from Riyadh power plant 9 from 2009 through 2021. NO₂ in the plumes initially increases with distance from the source, likely reflecting recovery from ozone titration. The fine pixel resolutions of Landsat and Sentinel-2 enable separation of individual point sources and stacks, including in urban background, and the long records enable examination of multidecadal emission trends. Our infer

SUBMITTER: Varon DJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11228473 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature