The Google fleet has been mapping cities around the world for years, making navigation easier for travelers. Now they have an important new responsibility: Google Street View cars will seek out natural gas leaks in urban areas. The data will not only help cities protect citizens from potentially harmful gas leaks, but also help cut accidental greenhouse gas emissions.
The project was outlined in a new paper published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. It’s a collaborative effort between Colorado State University researchers, the Environmental Defense Fund, and Google that involves attaching methane sensors to Google Street View cars.
Related: Google Street View takes you inside the fiery depths of an active volcano
The cars have been outfitted with special infrared lasers that can detect the amount of methane in the surrounding air in real time. Experiments found that the sensors had a range of about 65 feet, more than enough to detect leaks in urban settings where pipelines run beneath or near public streets.
So far, the cars have found that there may be many more methane leaks in America’s major cities than previously believed. Cities with more modern pipelines were far less likely to have leaks, while Boston—the worst offender—was found to have thousands of leaks, resulting in a loss of about 1,300 tons of gas per year.
Related: House Republicans move to make methane pollution great again
While these aren’t necessarily a threat to public health or safety as long as the leaks are outdoors and natural gas can’t build up to explosive levels, they can wreak havoc on the atmosphere. Methane is far more potent than carbon dioxide, and leaks could seriously accelerate climate change if they aren’t addressed.
Images via Wikipedia
