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In the early morning hours of February 8, NASA’s PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Climate, ocean Ecosystem) satellite mission, designed to study ocean health, air quality, and climate change impacts, was successfully launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 1:33 a.m. ET.
The $948 million Earth-observation satellite mission, subject to four attempted cancellations by the Trump administration, overcame challenges, including the global coronavirus pandemic. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated the PACE team, emphasizing the mission’s crucial role in addressing urgent questions about climate change. “Congratulations to the PACE team on a successful launch. With this new addition to NASA’s fleet of Earth-observing satellites, PACE will help us learn, like never before, how particles in our atmosphere and our oceans can identify key factors impacting global warming,” said Nelson. “Missions like this are supporting the Biden-Harris Administration’s climate agenda and helping us answer urgent questions about our changing climate.”
From its vantage point in orbit, the PACE satellite will utilize a hyperspectral ocean color instrument to measure oceans across various light spectrums. This groundbreaking technology will enable scientists to monitor microscopic organisms, primarily phytoplankton distribution globally. Phytoplankton are tiny organisms that drive larger aquatic global ecosystems and play a key role in the carbon cycle by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and converting it into their cellular material.
Most phytoplankton are too small to be individually seen with the unaided eye. However, some may be noticeable as colored patches on the water surface when present in large quantities due to the presence of chlorophyll within their cells which gives it pigment. Phytoplankton obtain their energy through photosynthesis, just like trees and other plants do on land.
The PACE satellite sensors will be capable of monitoring these tiny organisms on a daily basis, aiding in fisheries health forecasts, harmful algal bloom tracking, and detecting changes in the marine environment.
The spacecraft is also equipped with two polarimeter instruments, providing valuable insights into atmospheric aerosols, cloud properties, and air quality at local, regional, and global scales.
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Karen St. Germain, director of the Earth Science Division at NASA Headquarters, highlighted the mission’s potential –“Observations and scientific research from PACE will profoundly advance our knowledge of the ocean’s role in the climate cycle,” they said. “The value of PACE data skyrockets when we combine it with data and science from our Surface Water and Ocean Topography mission – ushering in a new era of ocean science. As an open-source science mission with early adopters ready to use its research and data, PACE will accelerate our understanding of the Earth system and help NASA deliver actionable science, data, and practical applications to help our coastal communities and industries address rapidly evolving challenges.”
“After 20 years of thinking about this mission, it’s exhilarating to watch it finally realized and to witness its launch. I couldn’t be prouder or more appreciative of our PACE team,” said Jeremy Werdell, PACE project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The opportunities PACE will offer are so exciting, and we’re going to be able to use these incredible technologies in ways we haven’t yet anticipated. It’s truly a mission of discovery.”
The PACE mission is managed by NASA Goddard, the PACE mission involved collaboration with various institutions, including the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a Dutch consortium led by the Netherlands Institute for Space Research and Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands. NASA’s Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center managed the launch services for the mission.
With PACE now in orbit, researchers eagerly await the valuable data it will provide to deepen our understanding of Earth’s complex systems and address challenges posed by a changing climate.
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