NASA and CNES release first global river discharge and sediment estimates from SWOT

Science teams at NASA and the French space agency CNES have released the first-ever global estimate of river discharge and suspended sediment observed from space, developed using data from the SWOT (Surface Water and Ocean Topography) satellite.

The resource provides estimates of river discharge—the volume of water flowing per second at a given point—and suspended sediment concentration for every river on Earth wider than 160 feet (50 meters). The information could help people manage freshwater resources more efficiently, predict floods more reliably, and forecast crop yields more accurately.

SWOT was built and is managed jointly by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and CNES, in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency and the UK Space Agency. The satellite has also produced other firsts, with analyses indicating relatively small ocean features such as eddies and waves have a larger impact on how nutrients and heat move through marine ecosystems than previously thought.

The data and the algorithms driving the global river estimates are publicly available through NASA’s Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center, part of the Earth Observing System Data and Information System.

Key Topics

Science, Swot Satellite, Nasa, Cnes, River Discharge, Suspended Sediment