Original air date: Dec. 14, 2017 at 7 p.m. PT (10 p.m. ET, 0300 UTC)
The original Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission, which began orbiting Earth in 2002, provided scientists with an unprecedented view of changes in our global water cycle, and allowed precise determination of sea-level rise, polar ice-cap mass loss in Greenland and Antarctica, or large-scale water storage changes over land. These discoveries provide a unique view of Earth’s climate and have far-reaching benefits to society and the world’s population. The twin satellites of the GRACE -On mission, scheduled for launch in early 2018, will continue this extremely successful work of tracking Earth’s water movement, while testing a new laser technology designed to improve the already remarkable precision of its microwave measurement system. This talk presents the fascinating technology behind gravity measurements from space, reviews some of the most exciting and surprising findings from GRACE, and provides a peek into what might lie ahead with GRACE -On.
Speaker:
Felix Landerer, Deputy Project Scientist for the joint NASA/GFZ GRACE -On
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