Satellite failure prolongs carbon economy mystery

A Nasa satellite designed to measure how much carbon ends up in the atmosphere and how much is stored in so-called "sinks" has failed to separate from the rocket that was carrying it into orbit.

In a statement issued this morning, Nasa admitted the launch had been a failure and the future of the $278m (£192m) Orbiting Carbon Observatory to answer vital questions about how carbon is absorbed by the Earth had been called into question.

The rocket and satellite apparently crashed in the sea near Antarctica, Nasa said.

"Several minutes into the flight of the Taurus rocket carrying Nasa's Orbiting Carbon Observatory spacecraft, launch managers declared a contingency after the payload fairing failed to separate," Nasa said in a statement.

Understanding exactly how much man-made carbon is in the atmosphere is fundamental to deciding how much companies should be able to emit and could have ramifications for the entire carbon economy and cap-and-trade schemes.

"It's critical that we understand the processes controlling carbon dioxide in our atmosphere today so we can predict how fast it will build up in the future and how quickly we'll have to adapt to climate change caused by carbon dioxide build-up," said David Crisp, principal investigator for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, speaking before the failed launch.

According to Nasa, of all the carbon humans have added to Earth's atmosphere since the start of the Industrial Revolution, only about 40 per cent has remained in Earth's atmosphere.

"About half of the remaining 60 per cent can be accounted for in Earth's ocean. The rest must have been absorbed somewhere on land, but scientists cannot yet determine specifically where this is taking place or what controls the efficiency of these land sinks. Scientists refer to this as the 'missing' carbon sink," the agency said in a recent statement.

The OCO was designed to improve knowledge about how atmospheric carbon interacts with carbon sinks in the ocean's and other sources and how human industries have affected that system, according to Nasa scientists.

"The Orbiting Carbon Observatory's carbon dioxide measurements will be pivotal in advancing our knowledge of virtually all Earth system land, atmosphere and ocean processes," said Michael Freilich, director of Nasa's Earth Science Division in Washington.

Nasa was also questioned on whether the failed launch would result in any environmental harmful debris falling to earth.

"All indications from the launch vehicle is that all stages did burn so from the launch vehicle side there is not much," said a Nasa spokesperson.