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Lost in space. That’s what happened to an $88 million satellite backed by Jeff Bezos, Google, and SpaceX after losing contact with ground control on June 20th and losing power on July 1st. The methane SAT launched in March of 2024. It’s an environmental defense fund satellite, collecting data on methane levels in Earth’s atmosphere, which were previously untrackable. It’s part of an effort to fight climate change. The ground control team says the spacecraft gave insight into the volume of methane entering the atmosphere from oil and gas producing regions. But a number of technical difficulties and glitches emerged after the satellite was launched. Teams monitoring the satellite say it is likely unrecoverable, and will be investigating its disappearance. Despite the loss, researchers do say the practices and information from this satellite will assist with conducting future methane measuring missions.
