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Worldwide detection of plastic from space with the EMIT imaging spectrometer
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  • Raissa Estrela,
  • David Ray Thompson,
  • Philip Gregory Brodrick,
  • K. Dana Chadwick,
  • Michelle M. Gierach,
  • Kelly Luis,
  • Robert O. Green,
  • Mark Swain
Raissa Estrela
Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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David Ray Thompson
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
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Philip Gregory Brodrick
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
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K. Dana Chadwick
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
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Michelle M. Gierach
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
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Kelly Luis
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
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Robert O. Green
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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Mark Swain
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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Abstract

Since 1970, increased plastic use and waste mismanagement have contributed to environmental pollution leading to the proliferation of microplastics and ocean contamination. Understanding the plastic presence on-land is crucial as most plastic pollution originates from land-based sources. From its vantage point-of-view on the International Space Station, NASA’s Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT) imaging spectrometer can measure surface reflectance spectra across a wavelength range of 380 nm to 2500 nm. We present a study using this instrument to detect distinctive absorption features of High-density polyethylene (HDPE) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) plastics in the shortwave infrared. By applying a column-wise adaptive matched filter and using a library of plastic reflectance spectra, we successfully identified signatures of these two types of plastics across multiple continents between +/- 52 degrees, primarily related to agricultural practices. Our study underscores the importance of monitoring land-based sources of plastic pollution to guide future mitigation strategies.
01 Oct 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
01 Oct 2024Published in ESS Open Archive