News

A peninsula of land is shown, oriented with water at the top and along both sides of the image, shows green vegetation surrounded by dark water that becomes more blue green in the lower right.  Two bridges connect this land to other areas at Manns Harbor at the top right and on the top left of the peninsula East Lake. A ghost forest runs down the coast from Manns Harbor to Stumpy Point.

Ghost Forests Creep Into North Carolina

Sea level rise is killing coastal forests, creating ghost forests

Three people with microphones sit on white chairs on stage.

NASA Participates in Sea Level Panel at the 79th UN General Assembly

"Addressing the Threats of Sea Level Rise" panel during 79th UN General Assembly

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Secretary Blinken Mentions NASA’s new Sea Level and Flood Platform

Satellite view of a peninsula between two relatively narrow rivers, with land visible on each side. The rivers meet at the point. The human settlement in the region is primarily on the peninsula, but another notable grouping is in the upper left.

How Winds and Waves Shape East Coast Sea Level

Different regions on the US East Coast have differing sea levels due to wind and waves.

Four images of the same location are side by side. They are shown in false color with dry land being black. The areas with color show some of these changes in the lake’s water depth. Deeper areas are blue, and shallower areas are yellow.

SWOT measures Death Valley’s temporary lake

Changes in ephemeral lake in Death Valley is measured by SWOT.

Using NASA satellite data, this map shows how monsoon rains and freshwater flowing into the Bay of Bengal keep it far less salty than the Arabian Sea to the west. (Areas of low and high salinity are shown in blue and yellow, respectively.)

How NASA Spotted El Niño Changing the Saltiness of Coastal Waters

New findings have revealed a coastal realm highly sensitive to changes in runoff and rainfall on land.

Photo of the city of Honolulu, from a nearby peak. Skyscrapers are featured right, with sprawling fields in the foreground with the ocean expanse on the left under a mostly sunny sky.

NASA Analysis Sees Spike in 2023 Global Sea Level Due to El Niño

A long-term sea level dataset shows ocean surface heights continuing to rise at faster and faster rates over decades of observations.

SWOT Satellite Catches Coastal Flooding During California Storms

SWOT mission provides a new view of water on land, at the coast, and in the ocean.

Science and Research

NASA’s Ocean Physics program directs multiple competitively-selected NASA’s Science Teams that study the physics of the oceans. Below are details about each science team.

Missions

The Ocean Physics program currently provides scientific leadership for the following operational missions. Past and future missions (to be) lead by the Ocean Physics program are also highlighted separately.

Operational

Currently taking measurements

Future

Upcoming missions

Non-Operational

Past missions providing data for current research

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QuikSCAT
1999-2018

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SPURS 1&2
2012-2013 & 2016-2017
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RapidScat
2014-2016
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Aquarius
2011-2015
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Jason-1
2001-2012
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Seasat
1978

Access the Data

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The Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center (PO.DAAC) preserves NASA's ocean and climate open data and makes these universally accessible and meaningful.

Partnerships

The Ocean Physics program actively engages in the following national and international partnerships that work together to sustain and enhance the Earth observing system.

Contacts

Nadya Vinogradova Shiffer
Lead, NASA Climate Variability and Change
Ocean Physics Program Manager
Contact | Bio

Jessica Hausman
Ocean Physics Support Scientist
Contact | Bio