How NASA's new satellite tracks water across ninety percent of our planet
Engineer Curtis Chen explains the initial data returned by the Surface Water Ocean Topography satellite. This mission, a collaboration between international space agencies, provides a first look at Earth's water surfaces, offering a glimpse into the capabilities of this global monitoring project.
The SWOT satellite, a joint effort led by NASA and the French Space Agency CNES, with additional support from the Canadian and UK space agencies, launched in December. The mission aims to monitor water across more than 90% of the Earth's surface.
Engineers refer to this initial batch of information as 'first light,' a term describing the first data received from the satellite. This early feedback is helping the team understand the mission's performance and the specific details it can capture regarding global water topography.
