2001 Images of the Month

  • Dec. 2001: Earth's shifting poles

    The Doris orbit determination and accurate location system is used in geodesy, the science of measuring Earth's shape and motion.

  • Nov. 2001: Tides and the climate

    Tides appear to have a less well-known impact on the Earth's climate. This discovery is based on almost ten years of highly precise altimetry data.

  • Oct. 2001: The Amazon under close surveillance

    Altimetry satellites are now being used to monitor river water level variations, permanent and temporary flood zones, and various other parameters, for a better water and natural hazard management in the Amazon region.

  • Sep. 2001: Changing currents

    Altimetry enables tide forecasting to within 2 to 3 centimetres in the middle of the ocean. This helps to constrain local tide models, and to forecast tidal currents near the coasts.

  • Aug. 2001: Currents, buoys and children

    Cnes, in partnership with IUFM, French teacher-training institute, initiated the Argonautica project for primary and secondary school children : They are able to compare the buoys' routes against maps of winds, sea level anomalies...

  • Jul. 2001: Altimetry and lobsters

    What kind of influence are ocean currents in the life of a lobster? To find out, scientists are using satellite altimetry data to map ocean circulation and predict the movements of whatever drifts with these currents.

  • Jun. 2001: An in-depth view

    The Greenland sea is a key zone of planetwide ocean circulation, i.e. thermohaline circulation. There, cold and salty Atlantic waters sink to the bottom of the ocean, like a waterfall. Descending, cold water mixes with ambient one, creating subsurface eddies that altimetry data analysis able us to detect.

  • May 2001: North Atlantic Oscillation makes waves

    Wave heights, measured by satellite altimetry, can also serve as an indicator for NAO phases and be used in climate prediction models.

  • Apr. 2001: Tracking hurricanes

    Altimetry contribute to the hurricane forecasting by collecting wave height and wind speed data, but also by the knowledge of ocean circulation it brings.

  • Mar. 2001: Mean rise in sea level is only part of the story

    The global mean sea level conceals many local disparities : example in the Mediterranean Sea.

  • Feb. 2001: Where does all the waste go?

    Satellite altimetry data are a valuable aid to simulate waste drift, providing useful information about ocean circulation.

  • Jan. 2001: Mercator takes oceanography into the future

    Mercator, the French operational oceanography project, is set to issue its first ocean bulletin for the North Atlantic on January 17.