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Freshwater

Water drives life, economies, and security — and NASA tracks its constant motion as it shifts between sea, land, and sky. From sustaining agriculture and energy to shaping landscapes and communities, freshwater is essential. NASA’s Earth science data helps the nation manage this vital resource, prepare for droughts and floods, and support long-term water resilience.

Image shows land in a vibrant green, surface water in blue. The Mississippi RIver meanders across the image vertically with various rivers feeding it from the right, such as the Obion River entering the image from the top right. The other major river entering the image is adjacent to Dyersburg and unlabeled. These rivers appear vibrant blue due to the volume of suspended sediment and are exceptionally wide. A large swath of land parallel to the Mississippi River on the left is primarily light blue in color.

Where Does NASA Fit?

NASA Earth Science provides a global view of water in motion. Satellites measure changes in lakes, rivers, and underground reserves, while tracking soil moisture, snow, and ice that feed vital water supplies. Airborne missions and on-the-ground campaigns add crucial detail. Scientists transform this data into forecasts, giving farmers, water managers, and policymakers the tools to help the nation adapt to shifting needs and plan for challenges ahead.

What is Earth's Water Budget?
The SWOT Mission
The GRACE Mission
The SMAP Mission
How NASA Helps
Freshwater News
Show Me the Data
Current Research
Additional Information

Featured Mission: SWOT

The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission is transforming how we measure Earth’s freshwater, providing the first global survey of the planet’s rivers, lakes, and other freshwater bodies from space. SWOT data helps U.S. businesses, farmers, water managers, scientists, and policymakers track floods, droughts, and water supplies — supporting agriculture, energy production, infrastructure planning, and more. By improving forecasts and water management strategies, SWOT helps protect economies and ensures reliable water resources for communities.

SWOT Mission Home
6 min read

International SWOT Mission Can Improve Flood Prediction

Article12 months ago
5 min read

NASA-Led Study Provides New Global Accounting of Earth’s Rivers

Article1 year ago
The international Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, as shown in this illustration, is the first global mission surveying Earth's surface water. SWOT's high-resolution data helps scientists measure how Earth's bodies of water change overtime.

Measuring Water From Space

How do we make sure SWOT’s space-based water measurements are accurate? Hydrology lead Tamlin Pavelsky explains the global validation effort.

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Featured Mission: GRACE

The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites measure fluctuations in Earth’s gravity each month. Developed by NASA and its partners, these twin satellites detect tiny shifts in mass on and beneath Earth's surface, helping scientists track underground water, glaciers, and the amount of water in large lakes.

GRACE Mission Home
4 min read

NASA Satellites Reveal Abrupt Drop in Global Freshwater Levels

Article6 months ago
A map of the Western United States with a color scale from red to blue where the darkest red indicates a 5 or more centimeter deficit in water per year and darkest blue 5 or more centimeter surplus. With the exception of Eastern Montana and Colorado the entire map is neutral to red shaded with Southern Central California a dark red spot with the entirety of the state in a shade of orange.

How GRACE Is Used For Groundwater Management

The GRACE satellites track groundwater changes, helping manage water supplies, prevent depletion, and support sustainable use.

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The two satellites that make up NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) mission, launching May 19, 2018, will monitor changes in ice sheets and glaciers, underground water storage and sea level, providing a unique view of Earth’s climate that has far-reaching benefits. Credit: NASA

15 Years of GRACE Earth Observations

From 2002 to 2017, the original GRACE satellites unlocked mysteries of how water moves around our planet. Watch how this groundbreaking mission changed our understanding.

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Featured Mission: SMAP

The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission provides critical data on soil moisture, helping scientists track how water moves between the land, atmosphere, and plants. By measuring moisture levels in the top layer of soil, SMAP improves drought monitoring, flood forecasting, and agricultural planning.

SMAP Mission Home

Exploring Earth’s Soil with SMAP

The SMAP mission teams up with the GLOBE Program to engage students in soil moisture science — connecting space-based data with hands-on learning.

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NASA Soil Moisture Data Advance Crop Forecasts

Data from the first NASA satellite mission dedicated to measuring the water content of soils is now being used by the USDA to monitor global croplands and make commodity forecasts.

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North American vegetation

Explore the VegScape

The USDA's VegScape is a web-based tool for monitoring U.S. crop conditions. It allows users to access, visualize, and analyze crop soil moisture data products derived from NASA’s SMAP satellite.

View Map

How NASA Helps

  • Predicting Floods & Droughts

    Working with farmers, local water utilities, national agencies, and more, NASA’s Water Resources Program translates the agency’s scientific observations into practical tools for managing water.
     
    For instance, by funding research and providing satellite data, the program helps improve the U.S. Drought Monitor, a weekly map that shows drought conditions across the country.

    Read More

    A map of the United States with an overlay of 5 shades of orange to indicate drought level. The darkest is maroon, and the lightest a pale yellow. The vast majority of the United States exists within abnormally dry conditions.
    Dry conditions parched all but two states in October 2024 and worsened as the month progressed.
    NASA Earth Observatory/ Michala Garrison

  • VIRGO Groundwater Tool

    VIRGO, a tool from NASA’s Western Water Applications Office, helps scientists track groundwater levels over time. It combines data from multiple sources, including measurements from wells and GPS stations on the ground, as well as satellite data that detects changes in gravity and land movement. By bringing all this information together, VIRGO makes it easier to see long-term groundwater trends and understand how water supplies are changing.

    Why VIRGO?

    Aerial view of the Friant-Kern Canal showing new and old parallel water channels cutting through California farmland, with flooded areas and green trees visible.
    The Friant-Kern Canal supports water management in California's San Joaquin Valley. A new airborne campaign is using NASA radar technology to understand how snowmelt replenishes groundwater in the area.
    Bureau of Reclamation

  • Supporting Farmers, Ranchers, and Water Managers

    NASA provides crucial data to help farmers, ranchers, and water managers make informed decisions about water use, ensuring sustainable agriculture and resource management.
     
    OpenET, supported in part by NASA, uses satellite data to estimate evapotranspiration (ET)—water evaporating from soil and transpiring from plants. By providing water-use data, OpenET helps farmers, water managers, and policymakers make informed decisions on irrigation, conservation, and drought response.
     
    Powered by Landsat, ECOSTRESS, and other Earth-observing satellites and sensors, OpenET delivers field-level water use estimates across the western U.S. This helps improve agricultural water efficiency and supports local and state water planning for sustainable resource use

    Read More

    This map shows evapotranspiration levels across Central California including the Bay Area. Darker blue can be seen in the Central Valley.
    A moisture measurement tool known as OpenET is improving the way farmers, ranchers, and water resource managers steward one of Earth’s most precious resources. View the full story
    NASA Earth Observatory using openetdata.org

Freshwater News

4 min read

International SWOT Satellite Spots Planet-Rumbling Greenland Tsunami

Article6 months ago
Image shows land in a vibrant green, surface water in blue. The Mississippi RIver meanders across the image vertically with various rivers feeding it from the right, such as the Obion River entering the image from the top right. The other major river entering the image is adjacent to Dyersburg and unlabeled. These rivers appear vibrant blue due to the volume of suspended sediment and are exceptionally wide. A large swath of land parallel to the Mississippi River on the left is primarily light blue in color.

Floods Swamp Tennessee

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Pyramid Lake in Bloom

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gray-brown landscape surrounds the Rio Grande and Devils rivers converging at a dam in the bottom right of the image and entering from the top left and top right of the image respectively. The dammed waterway is narrow and the banks, in many places are paler than the surrounding land.

Dry in the Rio Grande Basin

Learn about those of the NASA corps who make “space sailing” their career profession.

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Show Me the Data

View of Earth from space focused on the Americas, showing swirling ocean currents across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in white against a blue ocean background, highlighting global ocean circulation patterns.

NASA EarthData: Water Resources

The NASA EarthData Water Resources page provides access to satellite data, tools, and resources for monitoring and managing water availability, quality, and use, supporting applications in agriculture, disaster response, and resource planning.

Current Research

A view from orbit of the city of Memphis, Tennessee, with a flooded Mississippi river.

NASA’s Cloud-based Confluence Software Helps Hydrologists Study Rivers on a Global Scale

A map of the western U.S. focused on California. In October 2022 on the left the map is red showing a major drought. In March 2023 on the right the map is now light blue showing drought recovery. There is a bar at the bottom labeled "Water Equivalent Height Anomaly (mm)" that goes from dark red to medium blue. The dark red is -300, white is 0, and medium blue is 300.

Groundwater Declines in the U.S. Southwest

A beaver swims in the water with its head poking up.

NASA Data Helps Beavers Build Back Streams

A false color satellite image of California where snow is highlighted light blue. The Eastern portion of the state shows a significant degree of snow coverage and to the west the land is a vibrant green.

A Boom Year for Sierra Nevada Snow

Additional Information

In the blue-green ocean a small island sits to the left portion of the image. The green island is outlined with a bright somewhat yellow border of beach and has an inland pond connected to the ocean.

NASA’s Water Resources Program

This program supports the use of Earth observations in water resources management related to water demand, supply, and quality. 

Swirling distinct shades of light and medium blue as well as green are suspended in the deep blue Argentine sea all around the Falkland Islands in the lower right. Some thin cloud coverage appears in the upper left and one opaque white cloud sits in the lower right corner.

NASA ARSET

NASA offers in-person and online trainings on using satellite data to monitor water resources and , covering topics like rainfall, groundwater, evapotranspiration, and lake levels. Designed for policymakers, researchers, and applied science professionals, these trainings teach participants how to access, interpret, and apply NASA’s water data and tools.

swirling deep green in a field of near black blue Gulf of Oman. The center of the swirl is labeled bloom.

Earth Observatory: Water

The Earth Observatory’s Water page showcases satellite imagery and stories that explore the many ways water shapes our planet — from droughts and floods to glaciers and ocean currents. It serves as a visual and educational gateway to understanding Earth's dynamic water systems through NASA’s eyes in space.

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