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Explore NASA's groundbreaking Carbon-I mission concept in this 48-minute lecture that details the first space-based system designed to merge high-resolution land imaging with atmospheric spectral analysis. Learn how this innovative Earth System Explorer mission will simultaneously observe atmospheric trace gases and surface features at unprecedented spatial resolution, using ≤400m global sampling and sub-50m Target Mode capabilities to peer through cloud gaps and capture critical data in the humid tropics where carbon uncertainties are greatest. Discover the mission's ambitious three-year plan to create the first global maps of methane (CH₄), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and carbon monoxide (CO) at sub-kilometer scales, revealing both natural and anthropogenic emission processes that are currently invisible to existing observation systems. Understand the technical innovations that enable Carbon-I to address high-priority observables from the 2017 Decadal Survey, the competitive selection process among four candidate missions, and how this technology will provide the observational foundation needed to close critical gaps in global carbon budget understanding and improve climate feedback predictions.
