article_snippet.sent: the U.S. Southwest is responsible for producing the largest concentration of the greenhouse gas methane seen over the United States - and is the subject of a major new investigation to find out why.
article_snippet.sent: The Four Corners area (red) is the major U.S. hot spot for methane emissions in this map showing how much emissions varied from average background concentrations from 2003-2009 (dark colors are lower than average; lighter colors are higher).
article_snippet.sent: Researchers from several institutions are now in the Four Corners region of the U.S. Southwest with a suite of airborne and ground-based instruments, aiming to uncover reasons for a mysterious methane 'hot spot' detected from space. '
article_snippet.sent: Likely candidates include venting from oil and gas activities, which are primarily coalbed methane exploration and extraction in this region; active coal mines; and natural gas seeps.
article_snippet.sent: (Twin Otter Projects Defining Oil Well and Natural gas emissions) 2015, bringing airborne and ground-based instruments to investigate possible sources of the methane hot spot.
article_snippet.sent: Shiprock, New Mexico, is in the Four Corners region where an atmospheric methane "hot spot" can be seen from space.
article_snippet.sent: Researchers are currently in the area, trying to uncover the reasons for the methane hot spot.
article_snippet.sent: Hotspot of total column methane anomalies centered over the Four Corners region from 2003 to 2009, when a satellite-based methane-measuring instrument was operational.
article_snippet.sent: The Four Corners coal-fired power plant, near Farmington, is one of the targets Nasa wants to investigate as a possible cause of the methane detected by the satellite .
article_snippet.sent: This indicates the methane emissions should not be attributed to fracking but instead to leaks in natural gas production and processing equipment in New Mexico's San Juan Basin, which is the most active coalbed methane production area in New Mexico's.
highlights_snippet.sent: Small 'hot spot' responsible for producing the largest concentration of the greenhouse gas methane seen over the United States .
  