The NASA Technology Now Tracking Oilfield Methane
About this episode
Brendan Smith discusses innovative methane detection technology originally developed for Mars that is now being used in the oil and gas industry.
Methane is invisible, odorless, and far more potent than CO2 in the short term, so how do you actually catch it leaking? Brendan Smith, CEO of SeekOps Inc., explains how technology built for the Mars Curiosity rover ended up flying on drones over oil and gas sites here on Earth. We get into spectrometers versus satellites, why offshore detection is so tricky, what EU methane rules mean for US operators in 2027, and how SeekOps turns an invisible gas into something you can finally see. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Join the conversation shaping the future of energy. Collide is the community where oil & gas professionals connect, share insights, and solve real-world problems together. No noise. No fluff. Just the discussions that move our industry forward. Apply today at collide.io Click here to view the episode transcript. 00:00 Setup and the Power Hour combo 02:24 Crossing paths back in 2019 04:14 From PhD dropout to CEO 05:24 JPL, the first patent, and Mars rover tech 12:34 How a drone measures a methane plume 13:49 Ground, drones, planes, and satellites 19:00 Spinning out of JPL and the Equinor bet 24:55 What methane is and why it matters 29:01 Net zero and…
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