National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason-2 Watching Over Our Acknowledgments

Please call the Public Affairs Offices at NASA, NOAA, CNES or EUMETSAT before contacting individual scientists at these organizations.

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Alan Buis, 818-354-0474, [email protected]

NASA Headquarters Steve Cole, 202-358-0918, [email protected]

NASA Kennedy Space Center George Diller, 321-867-2468, [email protected]

NOAA Environmental , Data and Information Service John Leslie, 301-713-2087, x174, [email protected]

CNES Eliane Moreaux, 011-33-5-61-27-33-44, [email protected]

EUMETSAT Claudia Ritsert-Clark, 011-49-6151-807-609, [email protected]

NASA Web sites http://www.nasa.gov/ostm http://sealevel.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/ostm.html

NOAA Web site http://www.osd.noaa.gov/ostm/index.htm

CNES Web site http://www.aviso.oceanobs.com/en/missions/future-missions/jason-2/index.html

EUMETSAT Web site http://www.eumetsat.int/Home/Main/What_We_Do//Jason/index.htm?l=en

Content: Nicole Miklus Design: Sally J. Bensusen Editing: Alan D. Buis, Annie Richardson, Margaret Srinivasan, Rosemary Sullivant, Alan Ward

Cover image: NASA, CNES Table of Contents

The Ocean in a Changing ...... 4

Mapping the Ocean ...... 6

A Satellite Altimetry Family Tree ...... 8

TOPEX/Poseidon and Jason-1: Lessons Learned ...... 11

OSTM/Jason-2: Continuing the Altimetry Legacy ...... 12

How It All Works: The “Nuts and Bolts” of OSTM/Jason-2 ...... 13

The Instruments ...... 14

OSTM/Jason-2: How Is It Different? ...... 16

The Future: Jason-3 and Beyond ...... 17

OSTM/Jason-2 Science Team ...... 18 The Ocean in a Changing Climate

We see it on the evening news; we witness it in continue to change, it is first necessary to our own backyards—our climate is changing. understand what drives it. From heat waves to more devastating floods and hurricanes to melting glaciers and The Ocean’s Role in Climate level rise, the effects of climate change are all around us. The vitality of crops, our drinking The ocean is one of the biggest “drivers” of water supply, animal populations, the spread ’s climate system. Global climate is the of diseases, and, ultimately, the rise and fall result of a complex interplay between the of civilizations are all influenced by climate. atmosphere and ocean. The world ocean Scientists know that natural variability in stores immense amounts of heat—much more Earth’s climate affects weather patterns, but than the atmosphere—and recirculates this it’s also increasingly clear that the burning of energy around the planet in a process called fossil fuels by humans is a major contributor to the oceanic heat conveyor belt. The ocean cov- the changes we are experiencing. ers more than 70 percent of Earth’s surface During the last century, carbon dioxide and absorbs a large amount of the energy our emissions caused by human activities have planet receives from the . Solar energy been the main contributor to the 0.6ºC (1ºF) is not distributed evenly over the surface, increase in Earth’s average global air tempera- though. Equatorial regions receive more solar ture—a seemingly small amount, but enough radiation than they emit back to space, while to cause global environmental impacts. It is polar regions emit more radiation than they unclear, though, how much warming will receive from the Sun. The ocean, along with occur in the future and how widespread it the atmosphere, helps to move heat between will be. To predict how Earth’s climate will the equator and the poles.

65

Image credit: WH Films 45

The image at right shows 25 the dominant patterns for the change of of the global ocean from 5 1992 to 2008. The yel- low and red regions illus- -5 trate that over most of the ocean, the sea level is ris- ing at rates from 1-10 mil- -25 limeters per year. The pat- terns of are not uniform and are deter- mined by the ocean circu- -45 lation and the processes 0 30 60 90 120 150 180 210 240 270 300 330 360 through which heat is ab- sorbed and transported -65 Sea Level Anomaly (millimeters/year) by the ocean. Credit: L. Fu, NASA JPL -10 -6 -2 2 6 10

4 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean (PSU)

32 34 36 38

Atmospheric blow across the ocean —the most abundant greenhouse The oceanic heat conveyor surface to create currents that swirl in gyres gas and one that’s 50 times as powerful as belt is also known as the . around areas of high and low sea level. These carbon dioxide—into the atmosphere. At the Thermohaline because currents release heat as they travel from the same time, warmer ocean cause these surface and deep currents are driven both by equator to the poles, and some of this heat the ocean’s volume to increase in a process heat (“thermo”) and salinity is transferred to the atmosphere through called thermal expansion. The result is higher (“haline”). It is estimated that the round trip journey evaporation over tropical and subtropical sea levels that threaten coastal communities of a single section of this waters. As the currents lose heat, they begin and habitats. While we don’t know exactly conveyor belt can take from 1,000 to 2,000 years. Im- to cool and become more dense, slowly sink- how much more heat the ocean can absorb age credit: NASA, adapted ing and spreading throughout the deep parts from global warming, it is already clear that from the IPCC 2001 and of the ocean. Eventually, they will reach the significant changes in Earth’s hydrologic Rahmstorf 2002. surface once again and perpetuate the cycle in cycle and climate result from any excess stor- Note: PSU stands for this oceanic heat conveyor belt. In this way, age of heat. Practical Salinity Unit. One PSU is approximately the ocean regulates the on our With the evaporation rate higher, scientists equivalent to 1 gram of planet much like the thermostat in your home sea salt per kilogram of have found that the salinity of the ocean acts to warm or cool your surroundings. . is changing. Water in the polar regions is The Ocean and Rising Temperatures becoming fresher, while tropical waters are getting saltier. Changes in the salinity of the As global temperature rises, the excess heat ocean can disrupt its circulation patterns, is absorbed and stored in the upper layers of stalling the movement of heat and leading the ocean—a process that slows atmospheric to global or regional cooling within several warming. More than 80 percent of the heat decades. Earth has experienced these abrupt from global warming over the past 50 years climate changes throughout its history, with has been absorbed by the ocean. This heat, the most recent one—known as the Little Ice however, is not stored without consequence. Age—triggered about 700 years ago. Charting Increased sea surface temperatures cause the behavior of the ocean over time allows us evaporation to intensify, introducing more to better foresee changes in Earth’s climate.

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 5 Mapping the Ocean

Ocean Surface Topography Altimetry

The ocean surface has highs and lows, just The height of the sea surface is measured like the hills and valleys of Earth’s land with satellite altimetry. Radar altimeters depicted on a topographic map. The variations measure the distance between the satellite in height, called ocean surface topography, can and the sea surface by calculating the time it be as much as 2 meters (6.5 feet) from place takes for a microwave pulse to reach the sea to place. surface and travel back to the satellite. Earth’s gravity field imposes a greater influence The measurements are corrected to account on sea surface height. By causing the sea for anything that may delay the microwave surface to assume an irregular shape called pulses, such as water vapor in the lower the , gravity is responsible for height atmosphere, free electrons in the upper at- differences of up to 200 meters (656 feet). mosphere (ionosphere), and the dry air mass Ocean surface topography is determined by of the atmosphere. The result is remarkably removing the effect of Earth’s gravity from precise sea surface levels—to within a few the total sea surface height to reveal the centimeters (about one inch) height. Image credit: Bo Qiu 2-meter variations caused by ocean circulation, temperature, and salt content. It is a valuable Measurements of , indicator of the ocean’s role in our climate, velocity and direction, and speed can telling us where the ocean stores and trans- also be obtained using satellite altimetry. ports heat and how it interacts with the atmosphere. Accurate maps of ocean surface topog- raphy are crucial to understanding the ocean’s influence on our weather pat- Satellite radar altimeter terns and long-term measurements of ocean climate. The dramatic surface topography are greatly improved by impact that rising sea instruments that provide levels have on coastal precision orbit determi- nation. The Poseidon-3 regions is just one of altimeter on OSTM/Jason-2 many examples of is complemented by three such instruments: the how changes in the GPSP, LRA, and DORIS. ocean greatly affect (See The Instruments sec- tion on page 14.) Image our society. credit: NASA JPL

6 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean OSTM/Jason-2 map of sea level anomalies from July 4 to July 14, 2008. Image credit: CNES

Sea level Anomaly (centimeters)

-10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8 10

OSTM/Jason-2 map of wind speeds from July 4 to July 14, 2008. Image credit: CNES

Altimeter Wind Speed (meters/second)

0 1.5 3 4.5 6 7.5 9 10.5 12 13.5 15

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 7 A Satellite Altimetry Family Tree

Launched in 1978, The use of satellite altimetry to map the ocean (right) collected more data in 100 days than ships did surface began in 1973 with the launch of in the previous 100 years. NASA’s Skylab, a space science and engineer- Image credit: NASA ing laboratory sent into Earth orbit. Following Skylab, the GEOS-3 satellite carried the first spaceborne altimeter and was used to delin- eate the major trenches of the ocean. Subse- quent satellites continued to explore the use of ocean altimetry and, in 1978, NASA’s Seasat provided never-before-seen data on Earth’s ocean. With Seasat, the resolution of ocean Launched in 1992, TOPEX/ surface topography measurements increased Poseidon (below) began an international effort to char- dramatically. The mission provided a tantaliz- acterize the global ocean. ing glimpse into the many applications pos- Image credit: CNES sible by monitoring the ocean from space. Ushering in a new era marked by the long-term collection of ocean surface data, NASA and raphy to 3.3 centimeters (1.3 inches). Data the French space agency, the Centre Nationale from Jason-1 are available four days after d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), teamed up to being recorded and are used by weather and launch the Ocean Topography Experiment climate agencies for improved forecasting. (TOPEX)/Poseidon mission in 1992. TOPEX/ Poseidon began an international effort to char- To further extend the record of Earth’s acterize the world’s ocean and exceeded expecta- oceanographic data and enable greater data tions with its extended lifespan. Measuring sea usage by the forecasting community, four or- surface height over 95 percent of Earth’s ice-free ganizations collaborated to launch the Ocean ocean once every 10 days, TOPEX/Poseidon Surface Topography Mission on the Jason-2 gathered oceanographic data with unprecedent- satellite (OSTM/Jason-2) in 2008. NASA, the ed accuracy (to within 4 centimeters—less than National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin- 2 inches) for more than a decade. istration (NOAA), CNES, and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteo- With the success of TOPEX/Poseidon, scien- rological Satellites (EUMETSAT) worked tists recognized the importance of extending together to develop and launch OSTM/ the time-series of ocean observation data for Jason-2. The altimeter aboard the OSTM/ use in science and other ongoing applications Jason-2 satellite follows Jason-1 in its quest as well as improvements in our ability to make to continue mapping the ocean surface. With long-term climate projections. Launched in NOAA and EUMETSAT as newcomers to 2001, Jason-1 joined with TOPEX/Poseidon the ocean surface topography missions, both to obtain double global coverage until the organizations will gain experience in the field earlier mission’s hardware failure in 2005. by managing OSTM/Jason-2’s operation and Jason-1, also a joint project between NASA data processing. NASA and CNES will main- and CNES, measures ocean surface topog- tain OSTM/Jason-2’s instruments.

8 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean OSTM/Jason-2 was launched on June 20, in river basins on land, or changes caused 2008, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in by large earthquakes. Data from GRACE California atop a United Launch Alliance are critically important when it comes to Delta II rocket. At an operational orbit of obtaining an accurate measurement of 1,336 kilometers (830 miles), the spacecraft ocean surface topography. repeats its every 10 days to cover 95 percent of the world’s ice-free ocean. Dur- Satellite Altimetry Applications ing the first six to nine months of its mission, OSTM/Jason-2 flies in line with Jason-1 The interdisciplinary study of Earth’s ocean (approximately 55 seconds or 300 miles behind) is achieved through global partnerships of while scientists compare the operation and agencies such as NASA, NOAA, CNES, and accuracy of both satellites’ instruments and EUMETSAT. By combining their expertise data products. Once the cross-calibration and experience, these agencies facilitate the and validation are complete, Jason-1 is moved vast study of ocean surface topography. As to a position parallel to OSTM/Jason-2, a result, satellite altimetry has contributed a facilitating double global coverage of the wealth of information to the fields of ocean- world’s ocean. ography, climatology, and . Since Earth’s geoid influences ocean surface The time series of sea surface height mea- topography measurements, it’s important surements, approaching sixteen years, has to have a clear picture of our planet’s shape. provided oceanographers and marine opera- A “close relative” on the Altimetry Family tors with an exceptional opportunity for new Tree is the Gravity Recovery and Climate discoveries in both scientific research and Experiment (GRACE). GRACE, launched operational applications. In combination with other data streams such as , in 2002, maps monthly variations in Earth’s The 12:46 a.m. launch of gravity field and provides a closer approxi- winds, gravity, and ocean profiling floats, OSTM/Jason-2 from Van- mation of the geoid or true physical figure scientific researchers are discovering new denberg Air Force Base on June 20, 2008, enabled of Earth. Gravity field variations reflect ways to view ocean processes and are increas- it to go into orbit directly changes in ice mass in Greenland and Ant- ingly able to discern more intermediate-scale behind Jason-1. Image credit: ULA arctica, ocean mass changes, water content ocean structures and phenomena.

GRACE’s precise gravity measurements improve the accuracy of ocean altimetry data. Image credit: GFZ

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 9 Global sea level has Results from satellite risen about 3 millimeters (0.1 inch) per year since altimetry missions TOPEX/Poseidon (on the left) began its precise have led to signifi- measurement of sea sur- cant improvements face height in 1993 and was followed by Jason-1 in forecast accuracy. in 2001. In this graph, the NOAA scientists vertical scale represents globally averaged sea lev- routinely use satel- el in millimeters. Seasonal lite altimetry data variations in sea level have been removed to show the to anticipate the underlying trend. Credit: weather-related University of Colorado effects of El Niño and La Niña events and the climatic effects of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation—a 20- to 30-year-long ocean temperature shift ocean currents and eddies, which have a between a “warm phase” and a “cool phase”. major impact on coastal fisheries, offshore Data on the amount and distribution of heat oil facilities, ocean shipping, and marine in the ocean are used to predict hurricane ecosystems. Private companies use and dis- frequency and intensity. This forecasting tribute altimetry data tailored specially for ability becomes increasingly important as we commercial and operational applications. may see heightened hurricane activity with With the addition of OSTM/Jason-2, the warming of the globe. methodologies of ocean altimetry measure- By having access to data every several ments will transition from basic research and days, offshore industries can be prepared technology verification to these operational for rough weather that may interfere with uses. The focus will move from research operations or threaten safety. Informa- objectives to data applications that benefit tion on ocean eddies—currents that bring society. Operation of the OSTM/Jason-2 up nutrients from deeper waters—and satellite will be turned over to the operational ocean temperature is used to follow animal weather and climate agencies—NOAA in the migration patterns and evaluate coral United States and EUMETSAT, the Europe- reef health. The data can be used to map an meteorological satellite agency. NASA and CNES will continue to support instrument and spacecraft operations and will archive select data from the mission. They will also continue to support an international science team that uses the data to conduct important ocean science studies. Again, many of the study objectives include benefits to society. Seaturtle.org uses satellite The applications of ocean surface topography altimetry data to study mi- gratory routes of hawksbill are numerous and continue to grow as in- turtles in relation to sur- strument sophistication and data processing face fields in their ocean habitats. Image capabilities are enhanced. credit: E. van Wier

10 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean TOPEX/Poseidon and Jason-1 Lessons Learned

Variability of the ocean sur- face topography derived Sea Surface Height (cm) from radar altimeter mea- surements. The variability 0 10 20 30 40 reflects the presence of ocean eddies. Data from TOPEX/Poseidon and Eu- ropean While altimeters on early missions dem- time. We can finally begin to understand (ERS) satellites; image pro- cessing by L. Fu, NASA JPL onstrated that ocean surface topography how ocean circulation works and can use could be measured from space, it wasn’t satellite data to test the accuracy of our until TOPEX/Poseidon and Jason-1 that the computer models. We now know that importance of ocean monitoring became the ocean has changed since the launch widely known. Perhaps most striking about of TOPEX/Poseidon in 1992—it’s now what we’ve learned from TOPEX/Poseidon warmer, sea level has risen, and ocean gyres and Jason-1 is that our ocean is constant- have sped up and slowed down over a time ly changing. span of 15 years. Without TOPEX/Poseidon and Jason-1, we’d still be very much in the From these missions, we’ve achieved our first dark about the ocean and limited in our glimpse of the global ocean—its seasonal ability to determine how its changes will current changes and large-scale oscillations— impact our climate and society. and have been able to chart its changes over

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 11 OSTM/Jason-2 Continuing the Altimetry Legacy

Many oceanic phenomena take place over long time periods and require many years of continuous observations to study them. OSTM/Jason-2 will extend the important data time-series of into a third decade and will provide scientists with the information they need to answer increas- ingly complex questions about how our ocean functions. The observations from OSTM/ Jason-2 open up new possible applications for profiling floats mea- sure temperature, salinity, satellite altimetry data while also improving , and current ve- upon the accuracy of existing applications. locity of the ocean. When combined with sea sur- With this new information, operational users, face height data from sat- ellites, a complete descrip- such as private companies and ocean/weather tion of the upper ocean is forecasting agencies, will be more confident efficient operations and safe navigation and achieved. Image credit: of conditions predicted by their models. The Japan Coast Guard will benefit from OSTM’s observations. accuracy of hurricane predictions will also increase, saving lives and property while The data from OSTM/Jason-2 will be used The globe image at right assisting in disaster relief planning. Continuing in conjunction with data sets from GRACE shows Jason-1 data indi- cating February 2008 La to collect data on river and lake levels will and Argo (a global array of 3,000 ocean- Niña conditions. Image help us to improve management of our water profiling floats) for comprehensive coverage credit: NASA resources. Finally, offshore industries and the of ocean salinity, temperature, velocity, and military rely on the latest marine data for their surface topography.

Texas

Hurricane Rita rapidly in- Florida tensified to Category 5 sta- tus as it passed over the warm waters of the in the Gulf of Mex- ico in September 2005. The storm diminished to Category 3 by the time it traveled over cooler wa- ters. Data source: merged TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, Gulf of Follow-On (GFO), Mexico and altimeter data processed by the Univer- sity of Colorado’s CCAR group. Image credit: Uni- Cuba versity of Colorado

12 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean How It All Works The “Nuts and Bolts” of OSTM/Jason-2

has also been used for several other satel- The OSTM payload (left) is shown here fully inte- lites, including the NASA/CNES - grated onto the PROTEUS spacecraft bus. Image Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder credit: NASA Satellite (CALIPSO) mission. The OSTM/ Jason-2 platform has service and payload modules designed and adapted specifically for the mission. Weighing approximately 510 kilograms (1,124 pounds), OSTM/Jason-2 runs on 500 watts of energy—enough to power about eight household light bulbs. The spacecraft collects its energy via eight solar panels, four on each solar wing array. OSTM/Jason-2 has a primary mission of three years, with a planned extended mission of two years. The payload of OSTM/Jason-2 is made up of five primary science instruments, supplied by NASA and CNES, and three “passenger” instruments, supplied by CNES and Japan.

The OSTM/Jason-2 mission is based on the Jason-1 and TOPEX/Poseidon missions. The spacecraft design began with the selection of a spacecraft bus—the platform onto which the payload instruments are attached. OSTM/Jason-2’s bus is based on Thales’ PROTEUS low-Earth-orbit plat- A technician oversees the form. PROTEUS is a French acronym that attaching of the OSTM/ Jason-2 spacecraft to a tilt translates to “reconfigurable platform for dolly inside the Astrotech observing, telecommunications, and scien- processing facility at Van- denberg Air Force Base. tific uses”. First used for Jason-1, this bus Image credit: NASA

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 13 The Instruments

The Primary Instruments

Poseidon-3 is OSTM/Jason-2’s altimeter and main instrument. It is an advanced ver- AMR sion of the Poseidon-2 altimeter on Jason-1. Emitting pulses at two frequencies, Poseidon-3 GPSP measures ocean surface topography by calcu- Poseidon-3 electronics lating the distance between the satellite and Poseidon-3 the sea surface. The Advanced Microwave Altimeter Radiometer (AMR) improves the accuracy of Poseidon-3’s ocean surface topography measurements by correcting for water vapor in the atmosphere. To keep track of its velocity and place in orbit, OSTM/Jason-2 employs the Doppler DORIS Orbitography and Radio-positioning Integrated by AMR Satellite (DORIS) instrument. LRA Poseidon-3 uses DORIS to help improve measurements over coastal zones, inland The Poseidon-3 altimeter areas, and ice. Much like a Global Position- is OSTM/Jason-2’s main instrument. The AMR, DORIS, ing System (GPS) unit helps you find your LRA, and GPSP provide destination, the Global Positioning System data to improve the altim- eter measurement. Image Payload (GPSP) on OSTM/Jason-2 triangu- DORIS credit: NASA lates the spacecraft’s position at any given time with up to 12 GPS satellites. The Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA) is a mirror array that is used with ground- based laser ranging stations to track the GPSP

14 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean Data Products

NOAA, CNES, and EUMETSAT will pro- cess the raw data from OSTM/Jason-2 into data products and distribute them to users. Data will be grouped into three products: the Operational Geophysical Data Record (OGDR), the Interim Geophysical Data Record (IGDR), and the Geophysical Data Record (GDR). The OGDR consists of near LRA real-time data, delivered to the user in less than three hours. Unique to OSTM/Jason-2, satellite. Several of OSTM/Jason-2’s primary the OGDR is specially suited for near real- instruments are complementary, performing time forecasting. Meteorological agencies will similar functions to ensure that the satellite’s be able to use surface wind speed, sea surface position is monitored precisely. height, and wave data for atmospheric and The Passenger Instruments oceanic predictions. Both the IGDR and GDR are “offline”, made up of data collected The passenger instruments on OSTM/Jason-2 a few days or weeks prior to distribution. will be used to study additional topics of With data produced within one to one-and- interest. The Environment Characterization a-half days of being recorded, the IGDR is and Modelisation-2 (Carmen-2) instrument used in seasonal forecasting and to predict and Light Particle Telescope (LPT) will ocean weather five to seven days in advance. examine how radiation influences the satel- The GDR will be used in climate modeling lite’s components. With the Time Transfer by and provides sea surface data within 60 days Laser Link (T2L2) instrument, scientists can of being recorded. compare and synchronize ground clocks with high accuracy.

T2L2 is an optical time transfer experiment on Jason-2. Using pulses of light, it allows synchroni- zation of remote clocks on Earth and high-accuracy monitoring of the satellite’s clock. Image credit: G. Benjamin, CNES

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 15 OSTM/Jason-2 How Is It Different?

These data globes, cre- OSTM/Jason-2 con- ated with radar altimeter 1992 1993 1994 1995 measurements from TOPEX/ tinues the important Poseidon and Jason-1, rep- time-series of ocean resent 16 years of average annual sea-surface height observations, adding anomalies for the period to the 16 years of from 1992 to 2007. Image credit: NASA JPL data collected by TOPEX/Poseidon 1996 1997 1998 1999 and Jason-1. Opera- tional weather fore- casters will observe changes in ocean conditions more 2000 2001 2002 2003 quickly than ever before and will be able to make more accurate predic- tions of short-term weather events. 2004 2005 2006 2007 Scientists will have the long-term data that they need to predict large-scale events like El Niño and La Niña, and to understand how ocean almost 50 percent closer to coastal regions— circulation is affected by climate change. Ad- where the majority of Earth’s population lives. vancements made to instruments on OSTM/ This increased accuracy will provide data on Jason-2 will allow observations to be made the ever-changing coastal currents and sea On December 26, 2004 a level variation that impact population, trade Magnitude 9 earthquake and commerce, and tourism. struck off the coast of In- donesia and triggered a devastating . The international partnerships fostered by Four altimetry satellites-- the development of OSTM/Jason-2 will Jason-1, Topex/Poseidon, bring Europe’s and America’s investments in Envisat and GFO--passed over the Indian Ocean be- satellite altimetry research toward fully func- tween two and six hours tioning operations. Cooperation between after this event and col- lected an abundance of countries and agencies is necessary for future data that has been used to Earth missions—without international help refine tsunami wave propagation and dissipa- cooperation, it will be difficult to collect tion models and improve the global data we need to understand tsunami warning systems. Image credit: NASA JPL climate change.

16 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean The Future

JasonJason-3 and Beyond...

Targeted for launch in 2013, Jason-3 will affecting climate change. One of the satel- follow OSTM/Jason-2’s legacy of ocean lites planned to do this, the Surface Water monitoring from space. NOAA and Ocean Topography Mission (SWOT), will EUMETSAT will use their experience help us to manage our water resources in with OSTM/Jason-2 to design and imple- the face of climate change. ment Jason-3. The operation of Jason-3 will Satellite altimetry missions have already prevent any gap in ocean surface topography radically changed our understanding of the data and supply weather forecasters with ocean and its role in Earth’s climate. From the information they need. Jason-3 will also the weather forecast on your vacation to ensure that accurate predictions of sea level The Columbia River-Pacific the beach to the predicted ferocity of the Ocean boundary. Note the change and the accompanying impact to next hurricane, ocean surface topography color contrast where river coastal populations can be made. water and ocean water measurements are ingredients essential to meet. Image credit: NOAA Next-generation satellites will seek to planning our lives. With data from OSTM/ answer questions about the relationship Jason-2 and missions that follow, we will be between ocean and terrestrial waters (rivers, even better equipped to assess future climate lakes, and wetlands) in the hydrologic cycle, change and how we will safely respond to it. as well as the small-scale ocean processes

The SWOT spacecraft, shown here in an artist’s conception, will make accu- rate measurements of me- soscale ocean features and surface water parameters. Image credit: NASA JPL

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 17 Ocean Surface Topography Mission Science Team

Andersen, Ole B. Callahan, Philip Gourdeau, Lionel Danish National Space Center California Institute of Technology-JPL Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et (DNSC) U.S. Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Denmark France Cazenave, Anny Arnault, Sabine Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Griffin, David Laboratoire d’Océanographie et du Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Climat: Expérimentations et Approches France Research Organisation (CSIRO) Numériques (LOCEAN)-IRD Australia France Chapron, Bertrand L’Institut Francais de Recherche pour Haines, Bruce Becker, Matthias l’Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER) California Institute of Technology-JPL Technische Universitat Darmstadt France U.S. Germany Chelton, Dudley Han, Weiqing Benjamin, Juan José Oregon State University University of Colorado at Boulder Technical University of Catalonia U.S. U.S. Spain Cretaux, Jean-François Hoeyer, Jacob Bertiger, William Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) California Institute of Technology-JPL Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Denmark U.S. France Ichikawa, Kaoru Bingham, Rory Dadou, Isabelle Kyushu University Proudman Laboratory Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Japan U.K. Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) France Janssen, Peter Birkett, Charon European Centre for Medium-Range University of Maryland-College Park de Mey, Pierre Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) U.S. Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et U.K. Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Birol, Florence France Jayne, Steven Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Dombrowsky, Eric U.S. France Mercator Ocean France Kelly, Kathryn Blanc, Frédérique University of Washington Collecte Localisation Satellites (CLS) Dorandeu, Joël U.S. France Collecte Localisation Satellites (CLS) France Knudsen, Per Bonnefond, Pascal Danish National Space Center (DNSC), Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur-GEMINI Emery, William Denmark France University of Colorado at Boulder U.S. Lagerloef, Gary Bosch, Wolfgang Earth and Space Research Deutsches Geodätisches Eymard, Laurence U.S. Forschungsinstitut (DGFI) Laboratoire d’Océanographie et du Germany Climat: Expérimentations et Approches Larnicol, Gilles Numériques (LOCEAN) Collecte Localisation Satellites (CLS) Brown, Shannon France France California Institute of Technology-JPL U.S. Fernandes, Joana Lazar, Alban Faculdade de Ciencias-Universidade do Porto Laboratoire d’Océanographie et du Portugal Climat: Expérimentations et Approches Numériques (LOCEAN) France

18 OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean Leben, Robert Pavlis, Erricos Song, Y. Tony University of Colorado at Boulder University of Maryland-Baltimore California Institute of Technology-JPL U.S. U.S. U.S.

Lefevre, Jean-Michel Penduff, Thierry Strub, Paul Meteo France Laboratoire des Ecoulements Oregon State University France Géophysiques et Industriels (LEGI) U.S. France Legresy, Benoît Tailleux, Rémi Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Ponte, Rui Reading/Laboratoire des Ecoulements Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Atmospheric & Environmental Research, Inc. Géophysiques et Industriels (LEGI) France U.S. France

Lemoine, Frank Provost, Christine Testut, Laurent NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Laboratoire d’Océanographie et du Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et U.S. Climat: Expérimentations et Approches Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Numériques (LOCEAN) France Maximenko, Nikolai France University of Hawaii Vandemark, Douglas U.S. Qiu, Bo University of New Hampshire University of Hawaii U.S. Mertikas, Stelios U.S. Technical University of Crete Verron, Jacques Greece Quartly, Graham Laboratoire des Ecoulements National Oceanography Center (NOC) Géophysiques et Industriels (LEGI) Miller, Laury U.K. France NOAA/NESDIS/ORA U.S. Quilfen, Yves Vigo, Isabelle Institut Français de Recherche pour Universidad de Alicante Mognard, Nelly l’Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER) Spain Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et France Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Vivier, Frédéric France Radenac, Marie-Hélène Laboratoire d’Océanographie et du Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Climat: Expérimentations et Approches Morrow, Rosemary Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Numériques (LOCEAN) Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et France France Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) France Ray, Richard Wilkin, John NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Rutgers, The State University Naeije, Mark U.S. U.S. Delft Institute for Earth-Oriented Space Research (DEOS) Rhines, Peter Wunsch, Carl Netherlands University of Washington Massachusetts Institute of Technology U.S. U.S. Nerem, Robert University of Colorado at Boulder Roblou, Laurent Yahia, Hussein U.S. Laboratoire d’Etudes en Geophysique et Institut National de Recherche en Oceanographie Spatiale (LEGOS) Informatique et en Automatique (INRIA) Park, Young-Hyang France France Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle France Rosmorduc, Vinca Zanifé, Ouan-Zan Collecte Localisation Satellites (CLS) Collecte Localisation Satellites (CLS) Pascual, Ananda France France Institut Mediterrani d’Estudis Avançats, Instituto Mediterraneo de Estudios Shroeter, Jens Zlotnicki, Victor Avanzados (CSIC-UIB) Alfred Wegener Institute California Institute of Technology-JPL Spain Germany U.S.

OSTM I Watching Over Our Ocean 19 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology 4800 Oak Grove Drive Pasadena, Calif. 91109-8099 http://www.jpl.nasa.gov http://www.nasa.gov/ostm http://sealevel.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/ostm.html www.nasa.gov

NP-2008-10-052-GSFC