TROPOMI aboard Sentinel-5 Precursor: Prospective performance of CH4 retrievals for aerosol and cirrus loaded atmospheres

► TROPOMI aims at monitoring atmospheric methane from space. ► Our study proposes an accurate retrieval method. ► We evaluate performance in scattering atmospheres. ► Residual aerosol and cirrus induced retrieval errors are generally below 1%. ► TROPOMI will be able to continue accurate monitoring of methane.