The concentration of dissolved salt in our ocean IS known as "salinity".
SINCE 2011, DATA FROM NASA SATELLITES HAVE UNVEILED CHANGING SALINITY PATTERNS.
Why should YOU care about ocean salinity?
Salinity patterns tell us about changes in Earth's water cycle.
The weight of salt in seawater also helps to drive deep ocean currents. The video below shows the overall path of this type of global circulation, which impacts Earth's climate.
Salt dissolved in water. Sounds simple enough.
How do satellites measure salinity?
But the path between the ocean surface and the satellite has many factors that disturb the salinity signal or create errors in the measurement.
This type of noise interferes with the salinity measurement.
DID YOU THINK WE WERE DONE WITH extraterrestrial bodies? Heavens, No!
Now onto more "down to earth" signals.
Salinity signals also pass through THE "ionosphere" to reach satellite sensors. This part of Earth's upper atmosphere is where solar radiation has CREATED ions by removing one or more electrons FROM atoms or molecules.
The video above represents a linearly polarized wave. Yellow arrows show horizontal polarization and green show vertical polarization.
Well, that was complicated! Are we done?
In fact, ocean roughness is the largest source of error in satellite salinity measurements.
Human "noise" is also a factor in some regions.
So, To get a "simple" measurement like salinity...
You need to untanglE a lot of COMPLICATED signals:
It's a difficult process to get the accuracy needed for scientific studies...
... equivalent to salinity values of about 2 parts per Ten thousand.
That's a level of saltiness you couldn't taste... but nasa has been able to detect from space!
ACCESS NASA Salinity INFORMATION & DATA
- Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center - Aquarius
- Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center - SMAP
- Remote Sensing Systems - Salinity Data
Download movies from NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio
- Aquarius Sea Surface Salinity
- The Thermohaline Circulation
- Welcome to the Ionosphere
- Electromagnetic Waves and Polarization