Is Natural Gas Really the Cleanest of all Fossil Fuels?

Recent research conducted by NOAA shows that natural gas might be more detrimental to the environment than that of coal, further indicating that a widespread, global shift from coal to natural gas would in fact do little for global climate change, perhaps even intensifying global warming. Air sampled just north of a natural-gas field in Denver, Colorado revealed high levels of natural gas, leading scientists to estimate that approximately 4% of all gas is being lost to the atmosphere. Furthermore, as methane is roughly 25% more efficient at trapping heat than that of carbon dioxide, such high quantities of natural gas leaking into the atmosphere could very possibly offset any environmental edge that natural gas supposedly exerts over other types of fossil fuels, including that of coal. The article, which can be found here, further discusses the issue this presents, especially as the US has recently undergone a natural gas boom, driven by a new technology known as 'fracking.' The following image displays the change in temperature that will be experienced as a direct result of the percentage of natural gas leaked from the source. This raises the question of whether natural gas really is indeed better for the planet than that of coal?