QuickTime VR of TOPEX/Poseidon

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...

It's hard to "see" sea level rise by just looking at the ocean, but its effects are very real.

Jason-1 readies for launch in its bay at Vandenberg, AFB (10/31/01)

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich spacecraft lifts off from Space Launch Complex 4 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, Nov. 21, 2020, at 9:17 a.m. PST

This illustration shows the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich spacecraft in orbit above Earth with its deployable solar panels extended.

TOPEX/Poseidon Instruments

Earth’s global sea levels are rising – and are doing so at an accelerating rate.

TOPEX/Poseidon Ground Tracks

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.

Inside half of the Delta Clam shell faring

Jason-1: TRSR instrument

El Niño is characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific. The warmer water associated with El Niño displaces colder water in the upper layer of the ocean caus...

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).

High Resolution Jason-1 launch images

A look at how NASA is dealing with the threat of sea level rise to its coastal infrastructure.

Early morning at the launch pad

Jason-3

Jason-1 in full flight configuration

Watch the Jason-3 Mission Briefing from Friday, Jan 15, 2016 - panelists gave an overview of the Jason-3 mission.

Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will join a long-standing family of Earth observing satellites from NASA and European partners.

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.

NASA and its U.S. and international partners have teamed up to launch a new Earth-observing satellite called Sentinel-6B that will measure sea surface height of most of the planet’s ocean. These ob...

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.

OSTM/Jason-2 Line Drawing

Earth’s rising seas are some of the most visible signs of our warming planet. Over the last 23 years, NASA satellite missions have observed a steady rise in global sea levels as polar ice sheets me...