Satish Kumar and his graduate research team at UC Santa Barbara’s Vision Research Lab have led the charge in developing an AI-based methane detection tool called MethaneMapper. This first-of-its-kind software can spot methane gas via complex algorithms. The algorithms analyze multiple visual spectrums of images taken from custom-built cameras 10,000 feet aboveground. “The amount of damage carbon dioxide will do in 100 years, methane can do that in 1.2 years,” Kumar explained. “It’s that dangerous and that good at trapping heat.” The Vision Research Lab studies and develops image-processing technology using artificial intelligence and machine learning. Current lab projects include developing satellite imagery, identifying animals in the wild, and medical imaging dealing with brain scans. The MethaneMapper project itself took more than three years of development with a four-person team, going through two generations of graduate researchers. It was recently recognized at the 2023 Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition conference as one of the top works in its field.
