Satellite mission monitors ocean surface salinity

Understanding the links between ocean circulation, the global water cycle, and climate variations requires knowledge of ocean surface salinity. NASA's Aquarius satellite mission ( http://aquarius.nasa.gov ), which monitors the global open ocean surface salinity field, embarked on its science operations phase after completing the in‐orbit performance assessment on 1 December 2011. The data (Figure 1) are already showing new and interesting information.