TOPEX/Poseidon Launch

Jason-1: JMR instrument

Jason-3 Animation

After living in coastal Virginia and seeing the effects of climate change firsthand, Ben Hamlington is now researching sea level rise at NASA JPL.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite is lifted to vertical at Space Launch Complex 4

Jason-1 Launch Configuration

On the left is Sea Surface Height Anomalies (SSHA) relative to the sea level mean (1993-2018). On the right is Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) with the sea level trend as the straight line. The data a...

Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich Launch footage

This visualization shows total sea level change between 1992 and 2019, based on data collected from the TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, Jason-2, and Jason-3 satellites. Blue regions are where sea level ha...

Ice covers 10 percent of Earth's surface and helps moderate the planet's temperature.

TOPEX/Poseidon launch

Jason-1 Artists Concept

This is an artist's concept of the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich spacecraft.

These photos were taken during the Dual Payload Attach Fitting (DPAF) mating operation with Jason-1. (11/13/01) Photos: Scott Michel

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 Artist's Concept

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.

These photos were taken during the Dual Payload Attach Fitting (DPAF) mating operation with Jason-1. (11/13/01) Photos: Scott Michel

This artist's concept show Jason-3 over the Amazon.

Jason-1 launch images

This video discusses the water cycle, which is the movement of water around the Earth, and its importance to life. Changes to the water cycle affect climate and vice versa.

NASA Climate Watcher Waves Goodbye

OSTM/Jason-2 - All instruments plus data animation

Inside half of the Delta Clam shell faring

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

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).