NASA aircraft bridge the gap between satellites to track Greenland's melting ice

Space · Published 7 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: As satellites reach the end of their lifespans, NASA's airborne missions are stepping in. By flying low over Greenland, researchers are capturing a high-resolution picture of how glaciers respond to seasonal melting, providing critical data that space-based observations alone might miss.

Since 1991, researchers like William Kraball have flown NASA aircraft over Greenland at altitudes of approximately 2,000 feet to measure ice thickness. As the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) ages, this research has become increasingly vital. Since its January 2003 launch, ICESat has functioned for over six years past its original three-year design life. To ensure continuity of data, NASA uses airborne missions like Operation IceBridge to bridge the gap between ICESat and its successor, ICESat-2, which was scheduled for launch in 2018.

Operation IceBridge provides a more granular view of glacial changes than annual surveys once did. By flying repeat lines—such as those flown in early May compared to late summer—scientists can observe the cumulative response of glaciers to seasonal melting. This allows glaciologists like Joe MacGregor to observe how ice elevation evolves throughout the year, rather than just once annually. This temporal detail is vital for understanding the dynamics of massive glaciers like Helheim, one of Greenland's largest and fastest-melting glaciers.

These missions utilize specialized aircraft, such as the HU-25A Guardian—a modified Falcon 20 business jet—to carry advanced instrumentation. These tools include lasers to measure elevation changes, high-resolution cameras for surface imaging, and instruments to infer surface temperature. While these summer campaigns involve shorter 3.5-hour missions compared to 8-hour spring missions, they are essential for tracking the evolution of ice elevation across Greenland's northwest, southeast, and southwest coasts, as well as critical areas like the Jakobshavn Isbræ glacier.

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