Japanese satellite will show how the earth 'breathes'

Telegraph (UK): The Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT) has been created in Japan to monitor emissions from around the planet from space and it is hoped the data it provides will help in the fight against global warming. The orbiting satellite will track the emission of carbon dioxide and methane, gases that contribute heavily to the greenhouse effect.

Dubbed Ibuki - Japanese for "breath" - the satellite will record greenhouse gas emissions in 56,000 locations across the globe while orbiting the planet once every three days at an altitude of 666km. While there are currently around 280 observations points around the world monitoring greenhouse gas emissions, the new satellite will offer scientists a non-terrestrial perspective of global emissions for the first time.

Takashi Hamazaki, satellite project manager of the satellite at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said: "Ground observation points at present [ ] are not evenly distributed, so we can by no means say we are observing the entire globe. "By comparison, GOSAT will have 56,000 observation points and will be able to acquire data covering the entire globe every three days. We think this will improve the accuracy of global warming predictions."….

Image of "Ibuki" from JAXA's website