Covid pandemic’s disruption of industrial activity drove surge in methane in early 2020s

A drop in atmospheric pollution during the Covid-19 pandemic drove a surge in methane in the early 2020s, a new study finds. A sharp decline in hydroxy radicals – formed from carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen (NO_X) – halted the atmosphere’s ability to break down methane, accounting for around 80% of the methane spike. This is much larger than previous estimates and highlights that increased methane emissions form only part of the picture.