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Climate change is indeed a significant problem in the Asia Pacific region. The area is home to some of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate-related extreme weather events. The area is also a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for 39% of the world’s emissions and 60% of the world’s coal consumption.
Rising sea levels from global warming are eroding arable land in low-elevation coastal zones, posing a severe risk to rural incomes, food security, and commodity exports. Many countries in the area have been at the forefront of adaptation efforts. However, the challenges are significant and urgent, requiring substantial investment and tough choices about what to protect and relocate.
New Zealand recognises this issue. Especially in the digital technology transformation, the nation is poised to play a significant role in the MethaneSAT space mission through the new mission control centre at Te Pūnaha Ātea-Space Institute at the University of Auckland.
The global methane tracking satellite, MethaneSAT, will launch soon from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Designed to combat climate change, the satellite uses advanced technology to detect methane emissions from oil, gas, agriculture, and landfill.
Te Pūnaha Ātea-Space Institute will take over mission control operations of the spacecraft up to 12 months after launch. Chris Jackson, Mission Operations Centre Lead at Te Pūnaha Ātea, highlighted that the University of Auckland is the first university in Aotearoa to operate a satellite, providing students an excellent opportunity to kick-start their career in New Zealand’s growing space industry.
Over the past few years, the university has collaborated closely with partners within the space industry and research fields in New Zealand and abroad to build the operations infrastructure, knowledge, and experience required to operate spacecraft like MethaneSAT. With the upcoming launch, the institute is excited to move to the next phase of running the spacecraft and involving students in the operations, enabling them to take their experience into the local space sector.
The Mission Operations and Control Centre (MOCC) at the University will be responsible for the routine operations of the spacecraft, including payload operations, spacecraft health and safety, and collision avoidance. The university has recruited experienced spacecraft operations staff for the MOCC and will introduce student involvement in day-to-day operations. This hands-on experience, coupled with courses such as aerospace engineering, provides a unique combination of practical and academic training to students looking to join the space sector.
The MethaneSAT mission is led by a non-profit subsidiary of the United States-based Environmental Defence Fund – a leading global environmental organisation. It fills a critical gap in the capabilities of other satellites by being able to identify methane emissions across large geographic areas and measure them at predetermined locations. MethaneSAT will cover a comprehensive, 200-kilometre view path with a high-precision instrument, passing over important target regions every few days.
A multi-institution, multidisciplinary team of New Zealand’s leading researchers in atmospheric science and remote sensing, led by Dr Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher of NIWA, will use the MethaneSAT satellite to demonstrate the potential to use satellites to accurately measure methane emissions from agriculture, both in New Zealand and around the world. Funding for the MOCC is administered by the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) on behalf of the Government.
Te Pūnaha Ātea-Space Institute is a multidisciplinary centre of space science and engineering expertise at the University of Auckland. It aims to enhance the growth of the New Zealand space sector with world-leading applied research and development and educational programmes that shape the next generation of scientists and engineers.
Institute academics and staff have deep expertise and decades of experience in delivering and operating successful space missions, with facilities available to the New Zealand space industry for building, testing, and operating spacecraft.
By fostering this, institute academics and staff possess extensive expertise and decades of experience executing and managing successful space missions. Additionally, the institute offers facilities accessible to the New Zealand space industry, enabling spacecraft’s building, testing, and operation. This commitment to fostering a collaborative environment supports the growth and advancement of space exploration in New Zealand.
