We present the preliminary results of an InSAR analysis of peatland surface motion covering a large spatial and temporal extent. This work is the first large scale analysis of the Dutch Green Heart region, and is made possible using a novel distributed scatter (DS) InSAR processing method. This method is designed to handle breakages in the observed interferometric phase time series which occur due to temporal decorrelation, which we designate with the term loss-of-lock.

Methane is the second-strongest anthropogenic greenhouse gas, whose concentrations have more than doubled since pre-industrial times. Due to its short atmospheric lifetime, it is promising for climate change mitigation. This thesis focuses on estimating methane emissions from time-averaged satellite-measured concentration maps. The current method to do that systematically underestimates emission rates by 40%, and has an error estimate larger than 100% for most sources. I developed a new mass-balance method to reduce these errors, taking into account emissions moving from the source region into the surroundings. Its performance was tested using a year-long atmospheric transport model run over the United States. The new method has a lower emission underestimation of only 14-19%, while the errors are reduced by 60-70% compared to the old method. Direct application of the new method on TROPOMI data over two known large emission regions gives emission rates consistent with recent literature.

On a daily basis, the Sun experiences solarweather events, such as coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and solar flares. Varying in size, they are characterised by violent outbursts of matter and energy from the Sun’s surface. In the rare case of a CME of significant size hitting Earth, it could have immense consequences for the electrical power grid, especially at auroral latitudes. CMEs cause large disturbances to the Earth’s geomagnetic field, which result in an increased energy flux. In turn, this would induce large power surges in power lines, electrical wiring, and pipelines. If a system is not protected from such surges, it could short-circuit and be damaged or destroyed. Adverse space weather effects are not only limited to Earth-based electronics but also satellites, which are even more exposed to space weather than Earthbased electronics due to trapped particles. Without an early warning of an incoming CME, the damage of an extreme CME would be catastrophic, causing up to $10 trillion in damage just from damaged infrastructure...