News > NASA mission will study how hidden ocean swirls soak up heat of global warming

NASA mission will study how hidden ocean swirls soak up heat of global warming

Eddies and, on land, the ebb and flow of rivers and lakes will snap into focus after the launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, a joint venture between NASA and CNES, the French space agency. Expected to launch no earlier than 15 December from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the $1.2 billion satellite carries an altimeter that can measure the height of a water surface to within a couple centimeters, allowing researchers to infer the movements that sculpt it.