The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has launched a new satellite to track Earth’s ice levels. The aptly named ICESat-2 was launched via a Delta II rocket off the coast of California on September 15, 2018. While NASA has launched countless satellites in the past, this one has a different person. NASA says that the $1 billion ICESat-2 will be used specifically to track and measure Earth’s ice levels.
According to NASA, ice levels in the Arctic are declining by roughly 13.2% per decade. Assuming this trend continues, the Arctic could become ice free by 2040. This has prompted scientists to pay close attention to the Arctic and its ice levels. As the ice melts, it increases sea levels and contributes to new weather pattern. NASA is hoping, however, that it’s new satellite will provide data on Earth’s ice levels so that scientists can have a better understanding of it.
This isn’t the first ice-tracking satellite launched by NASA. In 2003, the space agency launched the ICESat, the first-generation ice-tracking satellite. After launching into Earth’s orbit, the first-generation ICESat tracked ice sheet elevations for six years before it was retired.
Of course, NASA has made some improvements to the original ICESat, allowing for an even more powerful second-generation ice-tracking satellite. The new ICESat-2 is capable of measuring changes in ice thickness with surprising accuracy. Reports indicate that it can measure ice thickness with up to 4 millimeter accuracy — an impressive feat considering that it floats more than 300 miles about Earth’s surface.
So, how exactly does NASA’s ICESat-2 measure ice thickness? The second-generation satellite features a powerful laser, known as an Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System, that shoots 10,000 laser beams per second onto the Earth’s surface. To put this number into perspective, the first-generation ICESat projected just 40 laser beams per second. As the ICESat-2 makes it way across a defined orbital path, it will measure Earth’s ice levels about 2.3 feet.
“We’re going to have measurements all over and we’re going to have them at much higher resolution, so we can do a much better job tying the change [in ice levels] to climate overall,” said NASA’s Tom Wagner.
Wagner also explained that the ICESat-2 is capable of measuring ice slopes as well as thickness. Therefore, it will provide scientists with invaluable data regarding the precise way in which Earth’s ice shelves are changing. The ICESat-2 is expected to remain active for three to 10 years.
