Patent ID: 8781755

Claim:
A method of obtaining a fugitive emission flux measurement of airborne matter within a fugitive emission from an emission source of interest, comprising: a) measuring the airborne matter using an airborne platform comprising an optical remote sensing instrument (ORSI) and one or more than one ground-based target along one or more than one measurement surface using two or more than two measurement beam paths, where each of the two or more than two measurement beam paths are vertical or substantially vertical, and parallel to each other, or substantially parallel to each other, the one or more than one measurement surface is of a height and width that spans or substantially spans the fugitive emission, and is oriented along a transverse straight path, or along a curved path, relative to a wind direction, and determining a parts per million meter (ppm-m) or a mass per unit area measurement of the airborne matter for each of the two or more than two measurement beam paths, the height being a distance between the airborne platform and the ground-based target; b) determining a wind velocity at one or more locations at or near each of the one or more than one measurement surface to obtain a representative wind velocity; c) integrating, with respect to a horizontal, or substantially horizontal, length along the one or more than one measurement surface that is perpendicular to the wind direction and transverse to a direction of the two or more than two measurement beam paths, the parts per million meter (ppm-m) or mass per unit area measurement of the airborne matter obtained from each of the two or more than two measurement beam paths, and determining a total mass per unit length of the airborne matter for each of the one or more than one measurement surface; and d) calculating the fugitive emission flux of the airborne matter in mass per unit time using a total mass per unit length of the airborne matter and the representative wind velocity.