Watching Our Oceans

For over 20 years NASA has been tracking the global surface topography of the ocean in order to understand the important role it plays in our daily lives. Climate change is causing our Ocean to war...

SSH and SST - Pacific Ocean

Global sea level rise is accelerating incrementally over time rather than increasing at a steady rate, as previously thought, according to a new study based on 25 years of NASA and European satelli...

The Jason-2 satellite sees something brewing in the Pacific. Researchers say it could be a significant El Niño with implications for global weather and climate.

Recorded live broadcast of Sentinel-6B, launched at 9:21 p.m. PST, Sunday, Nov. 16 (12:21 a.m. EST, Monday, Nov. 17) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

El Niño/La Niña - (12/1996 - 01/2000)

In many communities in the U.S., sea level rise is already a factor in people’s lives in the form of high-tide flooding.

Jason-3 Animation

The ocean is responsible for Earth's mild climate and makes life on Earth possible for all creatures.

Watch the Jason-3 Science Briefing from Friday, Jan 15, 2016 - panelists discussed the science and research of the Jason-3 mission.

B-roll for media. The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich is an Earth-observing satellite that will collect data on sea level and how it changes over time. By measuring sea surface height, scientists world...

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 4 at Vandenberg Air Force Base carrying the Jason-3 spacecraft. Liftoff was at 10:42 a.m. PST (1:42 p.m. EST).

SSH and SST - Global

TOPEX/Poseidon Ground Tracks

Sea Level Isn't Level - Why it matters

The joint U.S.-European Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich is the next in a line of Earth-observing satellites that will collect the most accurate data yet on sea level and how it changes over time. With ...

Sea Surface Height 01/2006-04/2010

To provide scientists with essential information about global and regional changes in the seas, NASA will launch the Jason-3 satellite from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

OSTM/Jason-2 - All instruments plus data animation

Oceans of Climate Change

Sea level rise is an indicator that our planet is warming. When ice on land, such as mountain glaciers or the ice sheets of Greenland or Antarctica, melts, that water contributes to sea level rise.

It’s not only water processes that play a role in global sea level rise – ground movements can play a significant role as well.

This animation illustrates the evolution of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies (relative to the respective normal state) in the Pacific Ocean associated with the 2015-2016 El Niño.

TOPEX/Poseidon Instruments

For NASA scientist Severine Fournier, studying our planet knows no borders.