This visualization celebrates over a year of successful Aquarius observations. Sea surface salinity is shown at various locations around the globe highlighting the following:
The Atlantic Ocean is generally much more salty than the Pacific
Low salinity waters in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific are transported westward
High influxes of fresh water from the Amazon River basin can be clearly seen
Low salinity waters are transported by the Labrador current to the south
High influxes of fresh water from the Ganges River basin can be seen keeping the Eastern Indian Ocean lower salinity than the Western Indian Ocean
The range of time shown is December 2011 through Decemeber 2012. The data continuously loops through this range every 6 seconds. This visualization was generated based on version 2.0 of the Aquarius data products with all 3 scanning beams.
Aquarius Sea Surface Salinity on Rotating Globes 2012
(Feb, 2013)
This visualization celebrates over a year of successful Aquarius observations. Sea surface salinity in the northern hemisphere is shown as the globe slowly rotates. The data cycles through a single year, 2012, and repeats. Two versions of the visualization are provied: a version with dates and a scientific color bar and another version without dates and a simpler color bar. The range of time shown is December 2011 through Decemeber 2012. The data continuously loops through this range every 6 seconds. This visualization was generated based on version 2.0 of the Aquarius data products with all 3 scanning beams.
QuikSCAT Arctic sea ice classification and extent (2002-2009)
(Jan, 2013)
Animation showing the extent of MY sea ice (white), FY sea ice (light gray), and open water (darker gray) from June 20, 2002 – November 23, 2009. Sea ice extent was derived from QuikSCAT data. Provided courtesy of David Long, Brigham Young University.
Ocean Bottom pressure from the Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment - GRACE
(Oct, 2012)
The GRACE twin satellites, launched 17 March 2002, are making detailed measurements of Earth's gravity field and are revolutionizing investigations about Earth's water reservoirs, large-scale solid earth changes, ice cover, and oceans. To aid in the interpretation of gravity change over the oceans, the GRACE Tellus project provides ocean bottom pressure (OBP) derived from the GRACE satellites. OBP is the sum of the mass of the atmosphere and ocean in a 'cylinder' above the seafloor.
Reconstructed Sea Surface Height from altimetry and tide gages: 1950-2009
(Oct, 2012)
This animation illustrates sea surface height anomalies (SSHA) from 1950 to 2009. The pre TOPEX/Poseidon (1992) SSHA data are derived from a cyclo-stationary EOF tuned to the AVISO SSHA and then applied to tide gauge data.
Simulation of movement of marine debris generated by the 2011 tsunami in Japan
(Oct, 2012)
The IPRC Surface Currents Diagnostic (SCUD) model is used to simulate evolution of debris field, drifting from the shores of Japan, affected by the March 11, 2011 tsunami. The model is on 1/4° grid. Daily surface velocities are diagnosed using the mean dynamic topography, AVISO anomalies of geostrophic velocities and satellite winds. Local coefficients of the model are tunes to best reproduce concurrent velocities of near-surface drifters. Down-wind velocities are added according to the windage of the model debris, varying from 0% to 5% and shown on the animation in colors, mixed according to the debris concentration and composition. The model is used to assess location of the tsunami debris in the ocean and the timeline of its arrival on the coastline.
Daily Argo Coverage and Model Ocean salinity at 150m Depth
(Oct, 2012)
The Argo Array of profiling floats is the first attempt to monitor the global subsurface ocean temperature and salinity fields in real time. The first floats were deployed in late 1999 and it took another 8 years to reach the global target of 3000 operating floats delivering data every 10 days. This animation shows daily float locations overlayed on the 150m depth salinity field from an eddy resolving ocean model. While 3000 floats seems like a lot, on a daily basis the ocean is still very undersampled.
Using data from several satellite altimeters, a finer picture of the ever-changing height of the oceans is revealed. Swirling currents called eddies pepper the global ocean. Like small pock-marks in sea surface height, these eddies are found in every major ocean basin. Near the Equator, the eddies give way to fast moving features called Kelvin Waves. When they build up in the Pacific, these waves can usher in a phenomenon known as El Nino, which happens when warm water and high sea levels move into the Eastern Pacific along the Equator. Occurring every 3 to 4 years, El Nino can have a big impact on weather across the globe, brining extra rainfall to the American Southwest and even affecting hurricanes in the Atlantic Oceans.
Beginning in 1978 with the first Earth orbiting ocean observing satellite, Seasat, continuing with Geosat, ERS-1,TOPEX/Poseidon, ERS-2, Jason-1, Envisat and Jason-2 missions and looking ahead to the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission scheduled to launch in 2020, the improvement of the spatial resolution in NASA and partners altimetric missions is dramatic. This animation illustrates this progression of improved data resolution. SWOT will provide sea surface height and hydrography measurements at very high spatial and temporal resolutions unlike anything that has ever been available.
Water is the fundamental ingredient for life on Earth. Looking at our Earth from space, with its vast and deep ocean, it appears as though there is an abundance of water for our use. However, only a small portion of Earth's water is accessible for our needs. How much fresh water exists and where it is stored affects us all. This animation uses Earth science data from a variety of sensors on NASA Earth observing satellites as well as cartoons to describe Earth's water cycle and the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. Sensors on a suite of NASA satellites observe and measure water on land, in the ocean and in the atmosphere. These measurements are important to understanding the availability and distribution of Earth's water -- vital to life and vulnerable to the impacts of climate change on a growing world population.
NASA Earth Observing System Data and Information Systems (EOSDIS)
EOSDIS is a distributed system of twelve data centers and science investigator processing systems. EOSDIS processes, archives, and distributes data from Earth observing satellites, field campaigns, airborne sensors, and related Earth science programs. These data enable the study of Earth from space to advance scientific understanding.
For more information about the data sets used in this animation please visit: http://earthdata.nasa.gov
NASA |The Ocean: A Driving Force for Weather and Climate
(Aug 3, 2012)
The Ocean is essential to life on Earth. Most of Earth's water is stored in the ocean. Although 40 percent of Earth's population lives within, or near coastal regions- the ocean impacts people everywhere. Without the ocean, our planet would be uninhabitable. This animation helps to convey the importance of Earth's oceanic processes as one component of Earth's interrelated systems.
This animation uses Earth science data from a variety of sensors on NASA Earth observing satellites to measure physical oceanography parameters such as ocean currents, ocean winds, sea surface height and sea surface temperature. These measurements, in combination with atmospheric measurements such as surface air temperature, precipitation and clouds can help scientists understand the ocean's impact on weather and climate and what this means for life here on Earth. NASA satellites and their unique view from space are helping to unveil the vast... and largely unexplored.... OCEAN.
NASA Earth Observing System Data and Information Systems (EOSDIS)
EOSDIS is a distributed system of twelve data centers and science investigator processing systems. EOSDIS processes, archives, and distributes data from Earth observing satellites, field campaigns, airborne sensors, and related Earth science programs. These data enable the study of Earth from space to advance scientific understanding.
For more information about the data sets used in this animation please visit: http://earthdata.nasa.gov
The Multi-Scale Ultra-High Resolution (MUR) Sea Surface Temperature (SST) Data Set Animation
(Jan 01, 2010 - Dec 31, 2011)
The Multi-Scale Ultra-High Resolution (MUR) Sea Surface Temperature (SST) Data Set combines data from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR), Moderate Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Terra and Aqua, and Advanced Microwave Spectroradiometer-EOS (AMSR-E) instruments in an optimal way to produce 1km global maps of SST. Noticeable in the animation from January 1 2010 to December 31, 2011 are the high energy regions associated with the Western Boundary Currents of the Gulf Stream and the Kuroshio. Additionally one can see the major upwelling areas of the world's oceans associated with the California, Peruvian/Chilean and South African Coasts.
La Niña: Sea Surface Temperature and Sea Surface Height Anomalies
(Jun 01, 2010 - Feb 07, 2011)
The animation illustrates the evolution of sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface height (SSH) anomalies (relative to the respective normal state, i.e., seasonal climatology) associated with the 2010-11 La Niña in the Pacific Ocean. SST and SSH anomalies reflect the heat content in the mixed layer (approximately upper 50 m) and the upper ocean (approximately upper 150 m) respectively. Warm/cold SST anomalies often are associated with high/low SSH anomalies. They provide complimentary views of the oceanic signature of climate variability such as El Niño and La Niña . La Niña is the cooling phase (in contrast to the warming phase, the El Niño) of an interannual mode of climate variability called El Nino-Southern Oscillation. Initial cooling appeared in the eastern to central equatorial Pacific around June 2010 and grew into a relatively strong La Niña event in late 2010. The event persists beyond February 2011.
*Data: The SST data are obtained from a blended AMSR-E and MODIS product. The seasonal climatology of SST (derived from AVHRR Pathfinder SST for the period of 1982-2008) is subtracted from the AMSR-E and MODIS blended data to produce the anomaly. The SSH data are from the JASON-1 and OSTM/JASON-2 satellite altimetry missions. The seasonal climatology of the SSH data is for the period of 1993-2008.
El Niño: Sea Surface Temperature and Sea Surface Height Anomalies
(Jan 01, 2009 - May 21, 2010)
The animation illustrates the evolution of sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface height (SSSH) anomalies* (relative to the respective normal state, i.e., seasonal climatology) associated with the 2009-10 El Nino in the Pacific Ocean. SST and SSH anomalies reflect the heat content in the mixed layer (approximately upper 50 m) and the upper ocean (approximately upper 150 m) respectively.
They provide complimentary views of the oceanic signature of climate variability El Nino. In April 2009, initial warming appeared in the eastern equatorial Pacific and grew into a moderate warming event by the end of the year. The event decays somewhat during the first two months of 2010, but later strengthens so that it now ranks in the top ten of the strongest events observed to date. The latest data shows the surface warming extending farther westward across the dateline than was seen in most of the El Nino events in the past few decades.
*Data: The SST data are obtained from a blended AMSR-E and MODIS product. The seasonal climatology of SST (derived from AVHRR Pathfinder SST for the period of 1982-2008) is subtracted from the AMSR-E and MODIS blended data to produce the anomaly. The SSH data are from the OSTM/JASON-2 satellite altimetry mission. The seasonal climatology of the SSH data is for the period of 1993-2008.
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