1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,000 This year, 2 00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:08,000 NASA is looking to answer some of the most pressing questions we have about 3 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:12,000 our planet, measuring things like sea and land surface temperatures, 4 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:16,000 rainfall, our water resources, storm system precipitation 5 00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:20,000 structure, and much more, from space. Buckle 6 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:24,000 your seatbelts, for a whirlwind tour of Earth-observing satellites launching to 7 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:28,000 low-Earth orbit in 2022. 8 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:32,000 [seagull noises] 9 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:40,000 Daydreaming of a trip to the lake? 10 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:44,000 SWOT focuses on the planet’s most precious resource: Water. The Surface Water 11 00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:48,000 and Ocean Topography mission will help researchers compile the first global 12 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:52,000 survey of Earth's surface freshwater and study our changing ocean 13 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:56,000 \hand coasts. It will use a new radar instrument to measure the elevation 14 00:00:56,000 --> 00:01:00,000 of water in major lakes, rivers, and wetlands as well as the ocean. 15 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:04,000 SWOT’s water height data helps track regional sea level changes, 16 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:08,000 observe small-scale ocean currents and eddies, 17 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:12,000 monitor coastal processes, and assess water resources 18 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:16,000 on land.\hWith a warming climate, an inventory of Earth’s freshwater 19 00:01:16,000 --> 00:01:20,000 storage and an understanding of sea level rise’s effects on coastal communities 20 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:24,000 is essential in order to help decision-makers manage their water 21 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:28,000 resources and plan for hazardous events. 22 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:32,000 [ocean waves] 23 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:36,000 Nothing can ruin a vacation quite 24 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:40,000 like stormy weather.\hLuckily, NASA 25 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:44,000 is launching TROPICS, a collection of six small satellites 26 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:48,000 specially designed to help scientists better understand damaging 27 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,000 tropical storms and hurricanes. 28 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:56,000 These small but mighty satellites each have a miniaturized microwave 29 00:01:56,000 --> 00:02:00,000 radiometer that peers through clouds and inside developing storms. 30 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:04,000 Traveling in pairs in three different orbits, 31 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:08,000 TROPICS will provide near-hourly observations of a storm's 32 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:12,000 precipitation, temperature, and humidity. 33 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:16,000 Collectively, TROPICS will be able to observe Earth’s surface more frequently 34 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:20,000 than current weather satellites making similar measurements. This will give scientists 35 00:02:20,000 --> 00:02:24,000 and forecasters more data to help them\hunderstand how 36 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:28,000 damaging tropical storms form, grow, and intensify. 37 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:36,000 In June 2021, the TROPICS first proof of concept 38 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:40,000 satellite launched, collecting important data that showed the promise 39 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:44,000 \hof these small satellites to help us prepare for the weather ahead. 40 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:48,000 [wind noises] 41 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:00,000 There’s more to dust than meets the eye. Winds on Earth 42 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:04,000 kick up millions of tons of dust every year, and where that dust goes 43 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:08,000 matters! Nutrient-rich dust from the Sahara Desert, for example, 44 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:12,000 is blown across the Atlantic Ocean where it fertilizes the Amazon rainforest. 45 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:16,000 But dust in the atmosphere can also reflect or trap additional heat 46 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:20,000 close to Earth’s surface, depending on its color and composition 47 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:24,000 – exacerbating or diminishing the greenhouse effect. 48 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:28,000 That’s where EMIT comes in. The Earth surface Mineral dust source InvesTigation 49 00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:32,000 will use spectroscopy – a process that splits light into a spectrum of wavelengths, 50 00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:36,000 which can be used to “fingerprint” different types of materials, including dust. 51 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:40,000 In this way, EMIT will observe the mineral composition of Earth’s dust 52 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:44,000 from its perch on the International Space Station.\hEMIT’s data 53 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:48,000 will help scientists map the areas on Earth that produce different types of dust, 54 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:52,000 and help them better understand the behavior of all that dust in the wind. 55 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:56,000 [wind noises] 56 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:04,000 For the last decade, a wealth of essential data has been streaming 57 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:08,000 back to Earth from satellites in the Joint Polar Satellite System, 58 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:12,000 a collaboration between NASA and NOAA. 59 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:16,000 Onboard suites of instruments measure … nearly 60 00:04:16,000 --> 00:04:20,000 everything you can think of.\hOver land, they measure vegetation, 61 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:24,000 fires, droughts, snowfall, and ice cover, 62 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:28,000 just to name a few. Over the oceans – sea surface temperatures 63 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,000 and algal blooms. And in the atmosphere – 64 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:36,000 clouds, rainfall, heat, smoke, dust storms, 65 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:40,000 ozone, and air quality.\hThese data feed 66 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:44,000 our daily weather forecasts, helping weather models see further 67 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:48,000 into the future to predict severe weather like hurricanes, tornadoes, 68 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:52,000 and snow storms, and monitor our changing climate. 69 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:56,000 In 2022, NASA and NOAA will launch 70 00:04:56,000 --> 00:05:00,000 JPSS-2, the next mighty bird in the JPSS 71 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:04,000 program. JPSS-2 and its successors 72 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:08,000 will carry on the decades-long Earth-observing legacy 73 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:12,000 through 2038.