Satellite Coastal and Oceanic Atmospheric Pollution Experiment (SCOAPE)
NASA, supported by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), evaluated the potential for using satellite data to monitor offshore air quality with a focus on the Gulf of America. The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) requires BOEM to ensure compliance with the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) so that OCS oil and gas exploration, development, and production do not significantly impact the air quality of any state.
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) requires the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to ensure compliance with the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) so that Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas exploration, development, and production do not significantly impact the air quality (AQ) of any state. In July 2015, BOEM personnel first approached the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to inquire if satellite data could be used to help monitor offshore AQ in BOEM’s jurisdiction, the portion of the OCS west of 87°30’ West longitude in the Gulf of America Region and the Chukchi and Beaufort Sea Planning Areas in the Alaska Region. An interagency agreement was signed in 2017 to begin a study, which was named the Satellite Coastal and Oceanic Atmospheric Pollution Experiment (SCOAPE). The ultimate goal of SCOAPE is to enable BOEM personnel, through the use of a suite of NASA and non-NASA resources (e.g., satellite data, in situ observations, and AQ forecasts), to assess how pollutants from offshore oil and natural gas (ONG) exploration, development, and production activities affect AQ on land. The first ship campaign was held in May 2019, featuring in-situ measurements of several gases and a Pandora spectrometer for validation of NO2 columns from satellite instruments. A follow-up campaign, SCOAPE-II, was held in June and October 2024.
Related Publications
2023.
"Two Air Quality Regimes in Total Column NO2 Over the Gulf of Mexico in May 2019: Shipboard and Satellite Views.",
Earth and Space Science,
10
(3):
[10.1029/2022ea002473]
[Journal Article/Letter]
2020.
"NASA resources to monitor offshore and coastal air quality.",
Sterling (VA): U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. OCS Study BOEM,
(2020-046):
32
[https://espis.boem.gov/final%20reports/BOEM_2020-046.pdf]
[Report]
2023.
"Flood Impacts on Net Ecosystem Exchange in the Midwestern and Southern United States in 2019.",
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres,
128
(18):
[10.1029/2022jd037697]
[Journal Article/Letter]
