The TOPEX/POSEIDON project is a cooperative project between the United States'
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the French Space
Agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).
The main goal of the TOPEX/POSEIDON mission is to understand the role of
ocean circulation in climate change.
TOPEX/POSEIDON uses advanced satellite radar altimetry to make very precise
and accurate observations of sea level for three (nominally) to five
(expected) years. The orbit, satellite bus and payload instruments
are optimized to measure sea level, to map basin-wide variations of currents,
and to monitor the effects of the currents, on global climate change. Altimeter
measurements also allow scientists to study ocean tides and waves, marine
geophysics and winds.
Launched by Ariane on August 10, 1992, TOPEX/POSEIDON is a core element of the
international World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) and Tropical Ocean
Global Atmosphere (TOGA) measurement programs. Analysis of the satellite
altimetry data, together with WOCE and TOGA ocean measurements, yields major
advances in our quantitative understanding of the ocean circulation and its
influence on climate. TOPEX/POSEIDON lays the foundation for long-term ocean
monitoring from space.