- The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite is sending down tantalizing views of Earth's water, including a global composite of sea surface heights. The satellite collected the data visualized above during SWOT's first full 21-day science orbit, which it completed between July 26 and Aug. 16. SWOT is measuring the height of nearly all water on Earth's surface, providing one of the most detailed, comprehensive views yet of the planet's oceans and freshwater lakes and rivers. The satellite is a collaboration between NASA and the French space agency, CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales). The animation shows sea surface height anomalies around the world: Red and orange indicate ocean heights that were higher than the global mean sea surface height, while blue represents heights lower than the mean. Sea level differences can highlight ocean currents, like the Gulf Stream coming off the U.S. East Coast or the Kuroshio current off the east coast of Japan. Sea surface height can also indicate regions of relatively warmer water - like the eastern part of the equatorial Pacific Ocean during an El Nino - because water expands as it warms. The SWOT science team made the measurements using the groundbreaking Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn) instrument. With two antennas spread 33 feet (10 meters) apart on a boom, KaRIn produces a pair of data swaths (tracks visible in the animation) as it circles the globe, bouncing radar pulses off the water's surface to collect surface-height measurements. "The detail that SWOT is sending back on sea levels around the world is incredible," said Parag Vaze, SWOT project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. "The data will advance research into the effects of climate change and help communities around the world better prepare for a warming world." Launched on Dec. 16, 2022, from Vandenberg Space Force Base in central California, SWOT is now in its operations phase, collecting data that will be used for research and other purposes.
SWOT is measuring the height of nearly all water on Earth's surface, providing one of the most detailed, comprehensive views yet of the planet's oceans and freshwater lakes and rivers. The satellite is a collaboration between NASA and the French space agency, CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales).
The animation shows sea surface height anomalies around the world: Red and orange indicate ocean heights that were higher than the global mean sea surface height, while blue represents heights lower than the mean. Sea level differences can highlight ocean currents, like the Gulf Stream coming off the U.S. East Coast or the Kuroshio current off the east coast of Japan. Sea surface height can also indicate regions of relatively warmer water - like the eastern part of the equatorial Pacific Ocean during an El Nino - because water expands as it warms.
The SWOT science team made the measurements using the groundbreaking Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn) instrument. With two antennas spread 33 feet (10 meters) apart on a boom, KaRIn produces a pair of data swaths (tracks visible in the animation) as it circles the globe, bouncing radar pulses off the water's surface to collect surface-height measurements.
"The detail that SWOT is sending back on sea levels around the world is incredible," said Parag Vaze, SWOT project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. "The data will advance research into the effects of climate change and help communities around the world better prepare for a warming world."
Launched on Dec. 16, 2022, from Vandenberg Space Force Base in central California, SWOT is now in its operations phase, collecting data that will be used for research and other purposes.
主題:Surface Water and Ocean Topography(SWOT)衛星が世界の海の表面高を収集する; NASAとCNES(Centre National d Etudes Spatiales)の共同プロジェクト主要な出来事:SWOTは7月26日から8月16日までの最初の完全な21日間のサイエンス軌道のデータを収集し、世界の大洋と淡水湖と川のほぼすべての水位の高さを測定している。
SWOTサイエンスチームはKaRInインストゥルメントを使用して測定を行っている。
直接的および潜在的な長期的な経済、環境、安全性への影響:SWOTが提供するデータは気候変動の影響を推測し、世界中のコミュニティが温暖化した世界により適切に準備するのに役立つ。
地政学的および社会的な影響:SWOTが提供するデータは、国境を越えて海洋を共有する国々間の貿易取引を促進し、グローバルな海洋保護のための活動を強化できる。
結論:Surface Water and Ocean Topography(SWOT)衛星は、NASAとCNES(Centre National d Etudes Spatiales)のコラボレーションにより、世界の大洋と淡水湖と川の高さを詳細かつ包括的に測定するために実施されている。
SWOTが提供するデータは、気候変動の影響を理解し、世界中のコミュニティが温暖化した世界により適切に準備できるように支援し、国境を越えた海洋の貿易を促進し、グローバルな海洋保護を強化するために役立つ。
調査質問:SWOTプロジェクトが試みることは何か?