 | Ocean Surface Topography Mission The Ocean Surface Topography Mission (OSTM)/Jason-2 is an international satellite mission that will extend into the next decade the continuous climate record of sea surface height measurements begun in 1992 by the joint NASA/Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) Topex/Poseidon mission and continued in 2001 by the NASA/CNES Jason-1 mission. This multi-decadal record has already helped scientists study global sea level rise and better understand how ocean circula-tion and climate change are related. Developed and proven through the joint efforts of NASA and CNES, high-precision ocean altimetry measures the distance between a satellite and the ocean surface to within a few centimeters. Accurate observations of variations in sea surface height—also known as ocean topography—provide scientists with information about the speed and direction of ocean currents and heat stored in the ocean. This information, in turn, reveals global climate variations. With OSTM/Jason-2, ocean altimetry has come of age. The mission will serve as a bridge to transition collection of these measurements to the world's weather and climate forecasting agencies, which will use them for short- and seasonal-to-long-range weather and climate forecasting. Sea level rise is one of the most important consequences and indicators of global climate change. From Topex/Poseidon and Jason-1 we know mean sea level has risen by about three millimeters a year since 1993. This is about twice the estimates from tide gauges for the previous century, indicating a possible recent acceleration. OSTM/Jason-2 will further monitor this trend and allow us to better understand year-to-year variations. The speedup of ice melting in Greenland and Antarctica is a wild card in predicting future sea level rise. Measurements from Jason-1 and OSTM/Jason-2, coupled with information from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (Grace) mission, will provide crucial information on the relative contributions of glacier melting and ocean heating to sea level change. Earth's oceans are a thermostat for our planet, keeping it from heating up quickly. More than 80 percent of the heat from global warming over the past 50 years has been absorbed by the oceans. Scientists want to know how much more heat the oceans can absorb, and how the warmer water affects Earth's atmosphere. OSTM/Jason-2 will help them better calculate the oceans' ability to store heat. The mission will also allow us to better understand large-scale climate phenomena like El Niño and La Niña, which can have wide-reaching effects. OSTM/Jason-2 data will be used in applications as diverse as, for example, routing ships, improving the safety and efficiency of offshore industry operations, managing fisheries, forecast-ing hurricanes and monitoring river and lake levels. OSTM/Jason-2's primary payload includes five instruments similar to those aboard Jason-1, along with three experimental instruments. Its main instrument is an altimeter that precisely measures the distance from the satellite to the ocean surface. Its radiometer measures the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, which can distort the altimeter measurements. Three location systems combine to measure the satellite's precise position in orbit. Instrument advances since Jason-1 will allow scientists to monitor the ocean in coastal regions with increased accuracy, almost 50 percent closer to coastlines that are home to nearly half of Earth's population than before. OSTM/Jason-2 is designed to last at least three years. After its launch from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket, OSTM/Jason-2 will be placed in the same orbit (1,336 kilometers) as Jason-1 at an inclination of 66 degrees to the equator. It will repeat its ground track every 10 days, covering 95 percent of the world's ice-free oceans. A tandem mission with Jason-1 will further improve tide models in coastal and shallow seas and help scientists better understand the dynamics of ocean currents and eddies. |
 | NASA - Topex / Poseidon Oceanography Mission Ends The joint NASA/Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales Topex/Poseidon oceanography satellite ceased operations after nearly 62,000 orbits of Earth. The spacecraft lost its ability to maneuver, bringing to a close a successful 13-year mission. Topex/Poseidon data have helped in hurricane and El Nino/La Nina forecasting, ocean and climate research, ship routing, offshore industries, fisheries management, marine mammals' research, modernizing global tide models and ocean debris tracking. The satellite's pitch reaction wheel, which helps keep the spacecraft in its proper orbital orientation, stalled on October 9, and ground controllers concluded the wheel was not functioning. The satellite remains in orbit 1,336 kilometers (830 miles) above the Earth, posing no threat to the planet. Topex/Poseidon's data have been the subject of more than 2,100 research publications; major science and application achievements include: - the first decade-long global descriptions of seasonal and yearly ocean current changes - refined scientists' estimates of rising global sea level during the past decade - provided a new understanding of the role tides play in mixing the deep ocean - developed the most accurate ever global ocean tides' models - provided the first global data set to test ocean general circulation model performance - demonstrated global positioning system measurements in space could determine spacecraft positions with unprecedented accuracy, enabling rapid delivery of data. Jason, a follow-on oceanography mission launched in December 2001, is continuing Topex/Poseidon's study of ocean circulation affects on the Earth's climate. Jason precisely maps the surface height, wind speed and wave height of 95 percent of Earth's ice-free oceans every 10 days. The data provide invaluable input for short-term weather forecasting, long-term climate forecasting and prediction models. Topex/Poseidon's stellar performance allowed it to fly in tandem with Jason for nearly three years, doubling data collection. This allowed the study of smaller-scale ocean phenomena like coastal tides, ocean eddies and currents. It also improved understanding of how low-frequency ocean waves transmit signals of climate change. Beyond Jason, the Ocean Surface Topography Mission is in development for a scheduled launch in 2008. It will continue providing high-precision sea surface height data to the oceanographic science community. The joint effort had its genesis in 1979, when NASA began developing the Topex mission, while the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales was planning a similar one called Poseidon. The agencies formed a single mission in 1983, and it was launched August 10, 1992. JPL manages the U.S. portion of Topex/Poseidon/Jason for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales manages the French portion of both missions. |
 | Ocean Surface Topography Mission A satellite that will help scientists better monitor and understand rises in global sea level, study the world's ocean circulation and its links to Earth's climate, and improve weather and climate forecasts. |
 | OSTM Launch A new NASA-French space agency oceanography satellite launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on a globe-circling voyage to continue charting sea level, a vital indicator of global climate change. The mission will return a vast amount of new data that will improve weather, climate and ocean forecasts. With a thunderous roar and fiery glow, the Ocean Surface Topography Mission/Jason 2 satellite arced through the blackness of an early central coastal California morning at 12:46 a.m. PDT on 20th June 2008, climbing into space atop a Delta II rocket. Fifty-five minutes later, OSTM/Jason 2 separated from the rocket's second stage, and then unfurled its twin sets of solar arrays. Ground controllers successfully acquired the spacecraft's signals. Initial telemetry reports show it to be in excellent health. OSTM/Jason 2 entered orbit about 10 to 15 kilometers below Jason 1. The new spacecraft will gradually use its thrusters to raise itself into the same 1,336-kilometer orbital altitude as Jason 1 and position itself to follow Jason 1's ground track, orbiting about 60 seconds behind Jason 1. The two spacecraft will fly in formation, making nearly simultaneous measurements for about six months to allow scientists to precisely calibrate OSTM/Jason 2's instruments. Once cross-calibration is complete, Jason 1 will alter course, adjusting its orbit so that its ground tracks fall midway between those of OSTM/Jason 2. Together, the two spacecraft will double global data coverage. This tandem mission will improve our knowledge of tides in coastal and shallow seas and internal tides in the open ocean, while improving our understanding of ocean currents and eddies. |
 | Earth Topography Many datasets have been created by utilizing the ETOPO2 dataset, which was generated from digital data bases of sea floor and land elevations on a 2-minute latitude/longitude grid (1 minute of latitude = 1 nautical mile, or 1.15 statute mile). The ETOPO2 is a combination of satellite altimetry observations, shipboard echo-sounding measurements, data from the Digital Bathymetric Data Base Variable Resolution and data from the GLOBE project which has a global digital elevation model. The topography and bathymetry side of the Hot Topo dataset was created with this digital data base. All of these datasets show the intricate topography and bathymetry of the Earth. The Himalayas in Asia, which are home to Mount Everest, the tallest point on Earth at 29,035 feet, are clearly visible. Other significant mountain ranges that are easily detected are the Andes in South America, the Rocky Mountains in North America, and the Alps in Europe. The longest mountain range in the world, the global mid-oceanic ridge system, can be found on the ocean floors and runs for approximately 37,000 miles. All of the mid-ocean ridges of the world can be regarded as a continuous oceanic ridge system. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which cuts through the Atlantic Ocean, has peaks that break the waters surface to form islands. The ridge joins the Indian Ridge which is to the east of Africa. All of these ridges are the result of plate tectonics. The plates in the Atlantic Ocean are slowly drifting apart causing the Atlantic Ocean to widen at a rate of 5 - 10 cm per year. Other notable features on the seafloor are the impressive trenches that have formed where one tectonic plate dives beneath another. The Marianas Trench between Japan and Australia is the deepest spot in the world's oceans with a depth of 36,201 feet. The deepest part of the Atlantic Ocean is in the Puerto Rico Trench, off the coast of Puerto Rico. It has recorded depths of 28,232 feet. |
 | Watching Our Oceans A video by JPL regarding the OTSM (Ocean Surface Topography Mission)/Jason 2 project. Date- 20th May 08 source- http://www-a.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/ |
 | HAARP RADIATION WORK ENERGY HIDDEN CIPHER BLOCK PATTERNS After uploading,I realized their were these 2 separate fields of radiating curved wave forms. The audio became like a geiger counter tone akin to cell ph transmission noise. Researching, I have come to realize that upon rewatching video in slo motion, hidden in the curved waves are square cipher blocks and dot pixels, similiar to a set of points on a curve in the field of cryptography. Continuous object images, some with the abiity to project out like a three-dimensional projection from a flat background I BELIEVE ANOTHER FUNCTION OF HAARP IS THE CONTINUOUS TOPOGRAPHY XRAYING OF EARTH AND THE OBJECT IMAGES ARE GRAPHIC MAPPING REPRESENTATIONS OF THE SURFACE OF EARTH'S FEATURES. Continuous revolving 3D composite imagery like using a turn table or kaleidoscope. I have come to find out my Government has the ability to make EVERY TREE (N BUILDING) A CELL TOWER. Military Dictionary topography (DOD) The configuration of the ground to include its RELIEF and all features. Topography addresses both dry land and the sea floor (underwater topography). relief (DOD, NATO) Inequalities of evaluation and the configuration of land features on the surface of the Earth which may be represented on maps or charts by contours, hypsometric tints, shading, or spot elevations. |
 | Preparándome para surfear - Preparing to surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which the participant is carried along the face of a breaking wave, most commonly using a surfboard, although wave-riders may make use of kneeboards, body boards (aka boogie boards), kayaks, surf skis, and their own bodies. Surfing-related sports such as paddleboarding and sea kayaking do not require waves, and other derivative sports such as kitesurfing and windsurfing rely primarily on wind for power, yet all of these tools may as well be used to ride waves. Two major subdivisions within contemporary stand-up surfing are reflected by the differences in surfboard design and riding style of longboarding and shortboarding. In tow-in surfing (most often, but not exclusively, associated with big wave surfing), a surfer is towed into the wave by a motorized water vehicle, such as a jetski, generally because standard paddling is often ineffective when trying to match a large wave's higher speed. Swell is generated when wind blows consistently over a large area of open water, called the wind's fetch. The size of a swell is determined by the strength of the wind, the length of its fetch and its duration. So, surf tends to be larger and more prevalent on coastlines exposed to large expanses of ocean traversed by intense low pressure systems. Local wind conditions affect wave quality, since the ridable surface of a wave can become choppy in blustery conditions. Ideal surf conditions include a light to moderate strength "offshore" wind, since this blows into the front of the wave making it barrel or tube. The factor which most determines wave shape is the topography of the seabed directly behind and immediately beneath the breaking wave. The contours of the reef or sand bank influence wave shape in two respects. Firstly, the steepness of the incline is proportional to the resulting upthrust. When a swell passes over a sudden steep slope, the force of the upthrust causes the top of the wave to be thrown forward, forming a curtain of water which plunges to the wave trough below. Secondly, the alignment of the contours relative to the swell direction determines the duration of the breaking process. When a swell runs along a slope, it continues to peel for as long as that configuration lasts. When swell wraps into a bay or around an island, the breaking wave gradually diminishes in size, as the wave front becomes stretched by diffraction. For specific surf spots, the state of the ocean tide can play a significant role in the quality of waves or hazards of surfing there. Tidal variations vary greatly among the various global surfing regions, and the effect the tide has on specific spots can vary greatly among the spots within each area. Locations such as Bali, Panama and Ireland experience 2-3 meter tide fluctuations, whereas in Hawaii the difference between high and low tide is typically less than one meter. In order to know a surf break, one must be sensitive to each of these factors. Each break is different, since the underwater topography of one place is unlike any other. At beach breaks, even the sandbanks change shape from week to week, so it takes commitment to get good waves (a skill dubbed "broceanography" by a few California surfers). That is why surfers have traditionally regarded surfing to be more of a lifestyle than a sport. Nowadays, however, surf forecasting is aided by advances in information technology, whereby mathematical modelling graphically depicts the size and direction of swells moving around the globe. |
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