A recent study examined almost 40 million flights in 2019 to determine the greenhouse gas emissions from air travel for nearly every country in the world. The total emissions from aviation were found to be 911 million tons, which is 50% higher than the 604 million tons reported to the United Nations. This is the first time that researchers have used big data to calculate per-country greenhouse gas emissions from aviation for the 197 countries covered by an international treaty on climate change, which was signed in 1992.The Convention on Climate Change treaty mandated that high-income countries report their aviation-related emissions, while 151 middle and lower income countries, such as China and India, were not obligated to report these emissions, but had the option to do so voluntarily. This is significant because the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change relies on country reports of emissions during negotiations on country-specific emissions reductions. Jan Klenner, a PhD candidate at NTNU’s Industrial Ecology Programme and the fThe primary author of the recent article published in Environmental Research Letters revealed that new data indicates China, a country that did not report its 2019 aviation-related emissions, ranked second only to the United States in terms of total aviation-related emissions. “Now we have a much clearer picture of aviation emissions per country, including previously unreported emissions, which tells you something about how we can go about reducing them,” said Helene Muri, a research professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology’s Industrial Ecology Programme. Muri was one of KlThe supervisors of Klenner and a co-author of the paper were surprised by the findings. The United States is the top emitter of aviation emissions for both international and domestic flights. The analysis showed that economic well-being leads to more aviation activity, as indicated by the per capita distribution of emissions. Despite having a small population, wealthy Norway ranked third in domestic emissions, right after the US and Australia.
Klenner tested the model he developed for this analysis by using data from Norway and published a paper reporting those results in 2022. Despite Norway’s geography, with its long, narrow shape, mountainous terrain, and sparsely populated northern region, Klenner’s 2022 analysis revealed that 50% of the country’s domestic flights were between the major cities of Oslo, Trondheim, Stavanger, Bergen, and Tromsø. Co-author Muri noted that the per capita emissions in Norway were remarkably high based on this data.
We can confirm from a Norwegian perspective that there is a lot of work to be done, as we rank third in the world for emissions per person from domestic sources.”
Utilizing Big Data
Anders Hammer Strømman, a professor at NTNU’s Industrial Ecology Programme and Klenner’s co-supervisor, emphasized the significance of the study in demonstrating the potential of using big data to regulate climate emissions. Strømman was also a co-author of the new paper.
“I believe it effectively showcases the opportunities in this type of research, where we have previously seen…The technology relies on statistical agencies and reporting processes that can take a year or longer to obtain this type of data,” he explained. “This approach allows us to conduct instant emissions modeling – we can measure the emissions from global aviation as they occur.”
The model, known as AviTeam, is the first to offer data for the 45 less developed countries that have never assessed their greenhouse gas emissions from aviation. Strømman notes that the model gives these countries access to information that would otherwise be challenging or impossible for them to gather.
The capability to calculate almost real-time aviation emissions could also offerAn important tool in the industry’s effort to reduce carbon emissions is big data. According to Strømman, “In the transition where we’re talking about the introduction of new fuels and new technologies, this type of big data allows us to identify those types of corridors or operations where it makes sense to test those strategies first.” The study was published in Environmental Research Letters in 2024.The article can be accessed at the link 10.1088/1748-9326/ad3a7d.