Biomass Initiative: Enhancing our understanding of the carbon cycle

Innovations and Initiatives Innovations and Initiatives

Posted by NewAdmin on 2025-02-18 08:48:59 |

Share: Facebook | Twitter | Whatsapp | Linkedin Visits: 21

---

The European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing to launch its Biomass mission in 2025, aimed at providing more precise measurements of forest biomass to deepen our understanding of the carbon cycle. Biomass Project Manager, Michael Fehringer, shared insights about the mission.

Forests, as major carbon sinks, play a vital role in the carbon cycle and the climate system. However, factors like forest degradation and deforestation are releasing stored carbon back into the atmosphere, negatively impacting the environment.

To address the rapid changes in forests and their implications on the climate, accurately quantifying the global carbon cycle is crucial. Currently, forest biomass measurements are insufficient in many regions of the world. ESA’s Biomass mission, using a novel measuring technique, will provide new data on forest height and above-ground biomass from space, helping to reduce uncertainties in carbon stock and flux calculations.

The mission will deploy a single low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite carrying a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) instrument. Mapping forest biomass from space is challenging due to the complexity of forests and the varying tree species and dense canopies. The SAR instrument can penetrate cloud cover and the canopy layer to estimate tree biomass accurately.

The Biomass satellite, designed and built by over 50 companies under Airbus UK, is scheduled for launch in April 2025 on the Vega-C rocket from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Editor Georgie Purcell spoke with Michael Fehringer to learn more about how the mission will clarify questions related to forest biomass and the carbon cycle.

What is the Biomass mission and what is its purpose?The Biomass mission is part of ESA’s Earth Science Missions and aims to provide valuable insights into the carbon cycle and climate modeling. While we know how much CO2 is released from fossil fuel consumption annually, the fate of this CO2 remains uncertain. It can either stay in the atmosphere, be absorbed by oceans, or be stored by plants, primarily in tropical forests. Determining the amount of CO2 absorbed by each sink, particularly forests, has been challenging due to uncertainties about carbon stored in forests. The Biomass mission’s goal is to measure the carbon content in forests by estimating the amount of wood per hectare. Roughly, a kilo of wood equals half a kilo of carbon. Additionally, the mission aims to monitor global forest changes, tracking growth and loss over time due to deforestation and other factors.

Can you explain the preparatory phase for the mission? How long has it been in development? Have there been challenges, and how have they been addressed?The Biomass mission is part of the ‘Explorer Missions’ group, which tests new technologies for future operational use. Since the technology had never been flown before, development has taken time.

The Biomass mission’s origins date back to 2005 when it was proposed as one of six potential missions. It was selected in 2012, and detailed industrial design work began with two European consortia. Airbus was awarded the contract to build the satellite in early 2016.

The mission faced several technological challenges, particularly with the radar instrument, which required a complex radar pulse and power amplifier. Additionally, COVID-19 caused significant delays as lockdowns hindered testing of engineering models. The pandemic resulted in a year-long delay, and there were further issues with the launcher in Europe. However, the project is now progressing smoothly and is on track for launch with Vega-C.

What will happen after the launch?Following launch, there will be a critical few days to power up the satellite. This will be followed by a six-month “commissioning” phase to check systems, operate the satellite, and collect data.

During this phase, the collected data will be compared to ground truth measurements from tropical areas where people measure tree thickness and height. The data will be used to refine algorithms. One challenge during this phase is the radar beam’s large 60km diameter, which must be homogeneous. To measure this, the team will fly over a calibration unit 20 times, requiring 60 days for detailed characterization.

After six months, the team will present the results to independent reviewers, showcasing how the satellite, instrument, and algorithms are working. The mission will then transition to operational phase.

Go!