Things you didn’t know about GRACE

Things you didn’t know about GRACE

Artistic vision of GRACE-FO satellites in orbit

In the near future, they plan to launch GRACE-FO satellites (a collaboration of NASA and the German Geophysical Research Center), which will continue to work on monitoring changes in the global water cycle and surface mass, which was so well done in the original GRACE mission. Let's consider the moments concerning the new mission.

1 percent (or less)

GRACE-FO monitors liquid and frozen water, measuring monthly changes in gravity. More than 99% of the gravitational planet does not change from month to month, as it represents a mass of solid earth. But the tiny part is constantly in motion and it is mostly water: rain falls, dew evaporates, ocean flow flows, ice melts, etc. GRACE-FO maps of regional changes in gravity will show where this small part moves every month.

2 satellites and one instrument

Usually, observation satellites carry instruments that track a certain part of the EM spectrum. But the GRACE-FO satellites themselves are instruments. The principal measures the tiny changes in the distance between a pair, arising from the slightly changing gravitational forces of a changeable mass below. Scientists publish monthly maps of changes in water and mass, combining data with GPS measurements.

3 gravity missions, including one on the moon The concept used for GRACE and GRACE-FO was also used to display lunar gravity. The twins of NASA GRAIL revolved around the moon for about a year, which made it possible to understand how the gravitational influence of the Earth affected the lunar form. The satellites were launched in September 2011 and decommissioned in December 2012.

4 thousand (and more) studies

GRACE observations have been used in more than 4,300 scientific papers. This is a large number for one scientific mission on Earth. In the majority of works there are several collaborators, but the actual number of participants is much larger.

5 things that were not known before the appearance of GRACE

Let's take the main facts from these 4300 articles:

  • The melting of glacial plates and depleting aquifers make a significant contribution to the Earth's rotational oscillations.
  • Several years of heavy precipitation can lead to rising water levels. This will slow down or stop global sea level rise for a short time.
  • A third of the groundwater aquifers dries faster than they can be replenished.
  • Climatic conditions, such as drought, can pose a greater threat to the Amazon rainforest than deforestation.
  • Australians sway up and down by 2-3 mm each year due to changes in the center of mass of the Earth caused by the movement of water.
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