NASA is reportedly launching a satellite that will follow the effects of climate change on the world’s oceans and gather data to improve weather forecasts.
The satellite will continue NASA’s three decades-long work to document rising sea levels and will give scientists a more precise view of the coastlines than they’ve ever had from space.
Head of science at NASA, Thomas Zurbuchen said: “The best front seat view on the oceans is from space.”
The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite will launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. NASA’s live coverage of the event will start at 8:45AM PT on its website, with the launch expected to take place at 9:17AM.
The satellite is the first of a pair of ocean-focused satellites, which will extend NASA and the European Space Agency’s research on global sea levels for another ten years. The next satellite, the Sentinel-6B, will follow in about five years.
To measure sea levels, they’ll beam electromagnetic signals down to the world’s oceans and then measure how long it takes for them to bounce back.
NASA scientists will be able to make higher-resolution observations much closer to shore with the new satellites, which will allow for more precise weather forecasts just before storms make landfall.
A satellite can pick up on that bubble of water rising and use that information for forecasts. The granular measurements could also be used to see how changes in sea level near coastlines might affect ship navigation and commercial fishing.
