NASA has shown a map of almost all the water on Earth – the SWOT apparatus helped with this

NASA scientists have used data from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite to create a map of almost all the water on Earth, reports Space.

The corresponding animation shows the different surface levels of the oceans, freshwater lakes and rivers on the planet. SWOT collected data during its first full 21-day mission, which lasted from July 26 to August 16.

SWOT was launched on December 16, 2022 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This satellite is a joint mission of NASA and the French National Center for Space Research.

During its mission, the spacecraft will orbit the Earth at an altitude of about 857 km. It will measure the water level on 90% of the planet’s surface every 21 days, documenting the corresponding changes.

Among other things, the data obtained from the spacecraft is expected to help study the effects of climate change.