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California Institute of Technology
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Arctic
Source:
Laurence C. Smith
Published:
May 7, 2014
Arctic
ENLARGE
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A diagram illustrating the swaths of data that SWOT will collect.
Diagram of SWOT Data Collection
SWOT will provide NASA’s first global survey of Earth’s surface water.
SWOT (Animated Gif)
Crowds flock to the Earth Sciences exhibits during the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) "Open House" event, giving volunteers (red shirts) a chance to share information about their various miss...
JPL Open House Earth Sciences Exhibits
Siberian Lakes
Siberian Lakes
A photograph of the Varzea Forest area of Brazil (1 of 4).
Varzea Forest, Brazil
Amazon Fishermen
Amazon Fishermen
This SWOT "Bannerbug" exhibit was created for display during hardware tests conducted during an eleven-day period in October 2008.
SWOT Banner on Display
Visiting Scout uses a color-coded, calibrated stick to determine "sea surface topography" within a wooden box while his sister records his results by placing stickers on a card.
Probing the Depths of "SWOT in a Box"
AirSWOT plays a key role in SWOT mission development. It allows scientists to study interferometric data before launch and thus be prepared to effectively interpret SWOT data after launch.
AirSWOT Platform
SWOT's nominal coverage during its 3-year science orbit will include measurements between 78°N and 78°S collected over a period of 21 days. Maps show the coverage after 3 days (left) and the full 2...
SWOT Science Orbit
AirSWOT is using parts of Saskatchewan as a testing ground for mapping water levels.
The Saskatchewan River and Prairie Potholes
SWOT will collect data across a 75-mile (120-kilometer) wide swath, with a gap in the center for an altimetry track. This animation shows the collection of data over the state of Florida, which is ...
This animation shows a simulation of SWOT collecting data over the state of Florida.
Artist's impression of the future SWOT satellite making sea surface height observations, even through clouds.
Artist's Impression of the SWOT Satellite
A photograph of the Amazon River Delta, captured by Landsat in 2006.
Landsat view of Amazon Delta
An alternate logo for the Surface Water Ocean Topography (SWOT) Mission.
SWOT Mission Logo with Full Text
SWOT technologies - advanced wide-swath technology, ocean and surface water topography measurements, and high-resolution products - will support such societal needs as dams, shipping, and surface w...
SWOT Technologies and Societal Needs
An image of the original concept for the Water and Terrestrial Elevation Recovery (WATER) Mission, which later became SWOT.
WATER Mission Concept Illustration
SWOT leaving NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, en route to March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, California. Once the scientific payload arrived, it was sent to a Thale...
SWOT leaving NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California en route to March Air Reserve Base.
This animation shows estimates of average sea ice freeboard — or the amount of ice above the waterline — taken over a 21-day period from Aug. 8, 2023, to Jan. 14, 2024, by the Surface Water and Oce...
SWOT cryosphere animation: sea ice freeboard
Floodplain Channel in the Amazon
Floodplain Channel in the Amazon
The SWOT satellite observatory is being jointly built by NASA and Centre National D’Études Spatiales (CNES).
NASA
NASA’s Blue Marble
NASA's Blue Marble
Part of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite's science instrument payload sits in a clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory during assembly.
Part of the SWOT satellite's science instrument payload in a clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Lake Calado, Amazon
Lake Calado, Amazon
The logo for the Surface Water Ocean Topography (SWOT) Mission.
SWOT Mission Logo