TOPEX/Poseidon Ground Tracks

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.

Jason-3 Ready for Launch

The Falcon 9 protective payload fairing containing the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite

One of the best ways to understand Earth's ocean is from the perspective of space.

These photos were taken during the Payload Attach Fitting (PAF) mating operation with Jason-1. (11/14/01) Photos: Scott Michel

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

Greenland and Antarctica are home to most of the world's glacial ice – including its only two ice sheets – making them areas of particular interest to scientists.

Jason-CS/Sentinel-6 - How they will work

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

El Niño/La Niña - (12/1996 - 01/2000)

Jason-3 on the Launch Pad

Mission team members perform acoustic tests of the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite in a chamber outfitted with giant speakers that blast the spacecraft with sound. This is to ensure that the ...

Sea Surface Height 01/2006-04/2010

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...

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

Launch preparations are progressing! (11/21/01) Photos: Stacy Mitchell of John Hopkins APL/TIMED project

Here we provide side by side comparisons of Pacific Ocean sea surface height (SSH) anomalies of what is presently happening in 2015 with the Pacific Ocean signal during the famous 1997 El Niño.

Changing conditions in the Pacific have stirred up Earth’s largest ocean and redistributed its heat, piling up warm waters along U.S. Western shores and raising sea level in the process.

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

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

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.

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

Decades of Discovery - How altimeters help us every day.

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

Launch preparations are progressing! (11/21/01) Photos: Stacy Mitchell of John Hopkins APL/TIMED project