SWOT: Empowering Communities with Earth Science Satellite for Future Planning

A groundbreaking Earth science venture, jointly undertaken by NASA and the French space agency Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES), is poised to reshape the way societies plan for the future through a comprehensive examination of the Earth's saltwater and freshwater bodies. The forthcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission is set to revolutionize our understanding by gauging water levels in lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and oceans. In an era of intensifying climate change, the hydrological cycle is undergoing rapid transformations, leading to scenarios where certain regions face inundation while others grapple with water scarcity. SWOT's high-precision data promises to elevate flood prediction accuracy and facilitate the monitoring of drought conditions. The value of this data is manifold, benefiting water management authorities, civil engineers, academic institutions, the U.S. Department of Defense, disaster preparedness agencies, and numerous other stakeholders vested in local water dynamics. This video presentation features insights from key figures, including a representative from the National Weather Service in Oregon, an engineer from the Alaska Department of Transportation, researchers affiliated with the University of Oregon and University of North Carolina, a scientist from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory collaborating with the Department of Defense, and a JPL scientist cooperating with the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Agency. The video spotlights specific scenarios, such as flood watches and warnings in Portland, Oregon (0:30), effective water resource management at Fern Ridge Lake, Oregon (1:08), safeguarding critical infrastructure in Alaska (2:05), addressing national security concerns within the Department of Defense (2:54), and bolstering coastal defenses in the Mississippi River Delta (3:24). Anticipated for launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California in December 2022, SWOT epitomizes the synergy between NASA and CNES, drawing additional contributions from the Canadian Space Agency and UK Space Agency. Notably, the U.S. facet of the project is spearheaded by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), overseen by Caltech in Pasadena, California.