Methane is the second-largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide. But new and better techniques to spot major emitters of the odorless, colorless gas have pushed curbing it up climate to-do lists. Scientists view reducing methane emissions from the fossil fuel industry as the cheapest and easiest way to hold down global temperatures in the near term. That could blunt the worst of climate change while buying time for reducing carbon emissions. 1. What is methane? It’s an invisible, odorless gas that, like carbon dioxide, traps solar energy as it’s radiated back toward space from the Earth’s surface. Unlike carbon dioxide, which can contribute to heating for centuries or longer, the impact of methane, whose chemical name is CH4, is felt primarily in the first 20 years after its release. During this period its potency can be more than 80 times that of CO2. Human activity accounts for […]