Track and trace

New Zealand is a perfect natural laboratory to test the capability of a satellite designed to track methane emissions.

- VERONIKA MEDUNA

When Sara MikaloffFletcher watched a SpaceX rocket take off and smoothly release a box-shaped satellite into orbit earlier this month, it marked the achievement of a long-held dream.

The Niwa scientist studies global cycles of greenhouse gases and has been one of the drivers of New Zealand's first official government-funded space mission.

MethaneSAT is a global initiative led by the US Environmental Defense Fund in partnership with the New Zealand Space Agency to track rising emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that is responsible for about 30% of warming globally.