Scientists have long known that methane has a much stronger effect on Earth’s climate than any other gas, especially carbon dioxide. It warms the planet faster and dissipates longer. That’s why ecologists carefully watched the situation around the eruptions and made predictions about their effects.

what do scientists say

The natural gas leak from the Nord Stream pipeline may be the largest ever methane leak from man-made infrastructure, but Chinese scientists say it’s not significant enough to cause any noticeable impact on Earth’s climate.

Methane usually flows naturally from decomposing materials and is also released from landfills and agricultural activities. The main source of global methane emissions is the oil and gas industry, which releases about 77 million tons of methane each year.

Such mild warming cannot be felt in ecosystems or human society. However, anthropogenic methane is the second largest contributor to global warming and is emitted from many agricultural and industrial sectors. If we are to achieve the 1.5 degrees Celsius or 2 degrees Celsius warming target set by the Paris Agreement, infrastructure damage like this must be avoided so that we can better control and reduce methane emissions.
Xiaolong Chen, a climatologist at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said in a statement.

Let us remind you that one of the currently proposed versions of the causes of the explosions is sabotage. A study conducted by WIRED shows that two large ships with trackers disabled appeared near the leak sites a few days before the incident. Two “dark vehicles” measuring between 95 and 130 meters each passed within a few miles of the leak sites, according to analysis of images from several satellites by satellite data tracking company SpaceKnow. It is not clear who they belong to. Russia denies intervention.