The deal to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030 was a first result from COP26. That's a big meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, where leaders from nearly all of the 200 countries in the world are meeting to try and agree who will do what to stop climate change.
We create less methane than carbon dioxide, or CO2, which is the main gas causing our planet to heat up. But, tonne for tonne, methane makes us much hotter. So, although some big countries didn't sign up to the Global Methane Pledge, it was good news that more than half the world plans to cut methane emissions.
But how can they know where the methane's coming from? And if every country is doing what it promised?
Well, where does methane come from? You've heard from WoW! News about people trying to stop cows burping out so much methane. And there are a lot of cows out there on planet Earth. But a lot of methane gets into our atmosphere from rotting food in rubbish dumps and from leaks in factories and pipelines that pump gas and oil.
That's where Riley and Alana come in. Riley's a space engineer and Alana is scientist who studies how to spot gas leaks on Earth, from space. Riley and Alana are part of a team called Carbon Mapper. Working with NASA, the American space agency, they plan to put loads of satellites into space and watch where the methane (and CO2) are coming from.
A leaking gas pipeline? A factory with a problem? They'll let people know so it can be fixed. So, if you're not careful with you're methane, in future you'll know the world is watching!
