Differences in anthropogenic greenhouse gas  emissions estimates explained

Lamb, William F.; Andrew, Robbie M.; Jones, Matthew; Nicholls, Zebedee; Peters, Glen P.; Smith, Chris; Saunois, Marielle; Grassi, Giacomo; Pongratz, Julia; Smith, Steven J.; Tubiello, Francesco N.; Crippa, Monica; Gidden, Matthew; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Minx, Jan; Forster, Piers M.

doi:10.5194/essd-18-2549-2026

Articles | Volume 18, issue 4

https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-2549-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-2549-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 18, issue 4

Data review article

|

09 Apr 2026

Data review article |

| 09 Apr 2026

Differences in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions estimates explained

William F. Lamb, Robbie M. Andrew, Matthew Jones, Zebedee Nicholls, Glen P. Peters, Chris Smith, Marielle Saunois, Giacomo Grassi, Julia Pongratz, Steven J. Smith, Francesco N. Tubiello, Monica Crippa, Matthew Gidden, Pierre Friedlingstein, Jan Minx, and Piers M. Forster

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Month	HTML	PDF	XML	Total
Apr 2025	187	50	5	242
May 2025	248	58	6	312
Jun 2025	125	22	6	153
Jul 2025	121	23	4	148
Aug 2025	308	14	2	324
Sep 2025	947	15	5	967
Oct 2025	117	13	1	131
Nov 2025	162	14	4	180
Dec 2025	107	36	5	148
Jan 2026	152	33	15	200
Feb 2026	90	36	4	130
Mar 2026	131	52	14	197
Apr 2026	759	258	28	1,045
May 2026	359	63	14	436
Jun 2026	115	28	10	153
Jul 2026	183	104	8	295
Aug 2026	71	41	7	119

Cumulative views and downloads (calculated since 24 Apr 2025)

Month	HTML	PDF	XML	Total
Apr 2025	187	50	5	242
May 2025	248	58	6	312
Jun 2025	125	22	6	153
Jul 2025	121	23	4	148
Aug 2025	308	14	2	324
Sep 2025	947	15	5	967
Oct 2025	117	13	1	131
Nov 2025	162	14	4	180
Dec 2025	107	36	5	148
Jan 2026	152	33	15	200
Feb 2026	90	36	4	130
Mar 2026	131	52	14	197
Apr 2026	759	258	28	1,045
May 2026	359	63	14	436
Jun 2026	115	28	10	153
Jul 2026	183	104	8	295
Aug 2026	71	41	7	119

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Total article views: 5,180 (including HTML, PDF, and XML) Thereof 5,014 with geography defined and 166 with unknown origin.

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Short summary

This study explores why global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions estimates vary. Key reasons include different coverage of gases and sectors, varying definitions of anthropogenic land use change emissions, and the Paris Agreement not covering all emission sources. The study highlights three main ways emissions data is reported, each with different objectives and resulting in varying global emission totals. It emphasizes the need for transparency in choosing datasets and setting assessment scopes.