WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:10.885 --> 00:00:11.386 Sure. 2 00:00:11.386 --> 00:00:12.637 So, oceans. 3 00:00:12.637 --> 00:00:14.973 We've been measuring different things in our oceans, 4 00:00:14.973 --> 00:00:17.392 which is such a critical piece of our Earth system puzzle. 5 00:00:17.392 --> 00:00:19.352 For a long time. We can look at temperature. 6 00:00:19.352 --> 00:00:22.355 We can look at surface height, which affect sea level rise. 7 00:00:22.731 --> 00:00:26.526 And so we've also been looking at the tiny microscopic organisms 8 00:00:26.526 --> 00:00:28.445 in our ocean called phytoplankton. 9 00:00:28.445 --> 00:00:31.322 And that's actually the first P in PACE. 10 00:00:31.322 --> 00:00:34.993 Now phytoplankton have chlorophyl just like plants on Earth. 11 00:00:34.993 --> 00:00:37.120 And so we can see green 12 00:00:37.120 --> 00:00:41.416 in different ways that tell us about the location of these organisms. 13 00:00:41.416 --> 00:00:45.295 So when you see a lot of them together, the ocean is actually not just blue 14 00:00:45.295 --> 00:00:48.631 but green because of these critical organisms in our ocean. 15 00:00:56.056 --> 00:00:56.681 Absolutely. 16 00:00:56.681 --> 00:01:00.643 I'm so excited to unveil images that we've gotten from less 17 00:01:00.643 --> 00:01:04.397 than three months on orbit, really transforming our understanding 18 00:01:04.397 --> 00:01:05.940 of oceans already. 19 00:01:05.940 --> 00:01:09.486 And so one of the exciting things about PACE is while we can look 20 00:01:09.486 --> 00:01:12.906 at these organisms. We've been studying Chlorophyl for a long time, 21 00:01:13.156 --> 00:01:16.993 but that looks at about like 4 to 6 different colors of green, if you will. 22 00:01:17.077 --> 00:01:21.372 With the advanced instruments on PACE, we can look at over 200 different types. 23 00:01:21.581 --> 00:01:25.001 And what that does is tell us important things about the types 24 00:01:25.251 --> 00:01:28.004 of organisms in our ocean and where we might have, 25 00:01:28.004 --> 00:01:32.092 for example, harmful algal blooms that could close beaches or areas 26 00:01:32.092 --> 00:01:35.095 where fish are going to be really happy because you have a better food source. 27 00:01:35.261 --> 00:01:39.307 So with that global picture and advanced instruments, we're really excited 28 00:01:39.307 --> 00:01:43.103 about what we're going to be learning both now and looking into the future 29 00:01:43.103 --> 00:01:47.190 as a response, as our our climate responds to changing patterns. 30 00:01:54.572 --> 00:01:55.865 So aerosols, 31 00:01:55.865 --> 00:01:59.869 which are you know, you can do smoke, it could be dust 32 00:02:00.036 --> 00:02:03.623 are critical pieces of our climate puzzle for a number of different reasons. 33 00:02:03.790 --> 00:02:06.876 One is that, for example, things like fires 34 00:02:06.876 --> 00:02:09.879 and smoke, they can move a long distance. 35 00:02:09.879 --> 00:02:14.592 And in Washington, D.C., we were severely impacted by, fires 36 00:02:14.592 --> 00:02:19.889 from from Canada and affecting air quality in all along the eastern seaboard. 37 00:02:19.889 --> 00:02:21.850 And so that's one aspect. 38 00:02:21.850 --> 00:02:24.936 But the other thing about aerosols is there are really important piece 39 00:02:24.936 --> 00:02:26.146 in weather formation. 40 00:02:26.146 --> 00:02:29.274 So looking at where clouds and rain may form. 41 00:02:29.482 --> 00:02:33.403 And so as we have an increased understanding of the distribution 42 00:02:33.403 --> 00:02:37.740 and types of aerosols in our atmosphere, we will have another piece of our puzzle 43 00:02:37.740 --> 00:02:41.744 to improve weather forecasting and look at how our climate may respond 44 00:02:41.744 --> 00:02:42.370 in the future. 45 00:02:51.171 --> 00:02:51.671 That's right. 46 00:02:51.671 --> 00:02:55.216 Well, 2023 really was the warmest year on record, 47 00:02:55.216 --> 00:02:59.262 and unfortunately we had other, peaks that year as well. 48 00:02:59.262 --> 00:03:03.099 We had in July 2023 was the hottest month on record. 49 00:03:03.099 --> 00:03:06.060 We also had the warmest summer and fall. 50 00:03:06.060 --> 00:03:08.813 Now, these extremes are really important to understand 51 00:03:08.813 --> 00:03:14.611 because we know that as our temperatures increase as a result of human emissions, 52 00:03:14.736 --> 00:03:18.281 we are seeing more extremes like droughts or floods. 53 00:03:18.489 --> 00:03:22.160 And so part of NASA's role is to piece together 54 00:03:22.243 --> 00:03:26.581 how all of these systems interact into more of an interconnected system, 55 00:03:26.789 --> 00:03:29.667 to better understand how we may respond to these events 56 00:03:29.667 --> 00:03:32.670 in the future. 57 00:03:36.716 --> 00:03:36.883 Well, 58 00:03:36.883 --> 00:03:39.886 I have the great fortune of speaking with you today on Earth Day. 59 00:03:40.053 --> 00:03:44.682 And what's really important to know is that we all have agency in this, right? 60 00:03:44.682 --> 00:03:48.186 So we all can do our own part to understand and celebrate the earth, 61 00:03:48.436 --> 00:03:53.775 talking to our our children and talking to community leaders and decision makers 62 00:03:53.775 --> 00:03:58.571 about the importance of studying the earth and the all hands on deck effort. 63 00:03:58.571 --> 00:04:01.449 We need to better understand what's happened in the past, 64 00:04:01.449 --> 00:04:05.370 observe the present, and improve our forecasting of the future. 65 00:04:05.370 --> 00:04:08.831 And so together, we can all move this forward to build more resilient 66 00:04:08.873 --> 00:04:12.085 societies and mitigate impacts for future generations. 67 00:04:20.593 --> 00:04:23.763 Well, oceans are a really important part of the climate puzzle. 68 00:04:23.805 --> 00:04:27.183 First, they absorb 90% of the heat 69 00:04:27.350 --> 00:04:30.395 that has been emitted as a result of carbon dioxide. 70 00:04:30.395 --> 00:04:35.108 So looking at oceans as a huge part of that balancing is critical. 71 00:04:35.275 --> 00:04:37.860 Also, the things that we talked about before, 72 00:04:37.860 --> 00:04:41.823 those phytoplankton absorb carbon dioxide, just like our plants do. 73 00:04:41.823 --> 00:04:46.035 And so as we understand more about these different communities in our oceans, 74 00:04:46.035 --> 00:04:49.747 we get a better understanding of both the sources of carbon dioxide, 75 00:04:49.747 --> 00:04:52.959 but such as with aerosols as well as the sinks. 76 00:04:53.167 --> 00:04:56.087 So together with the over two dozen 77 00:04:56.087 --> 00:04:59.007 satellites and instruments that NASA have in concert 78 00:04:59.007 --> 00:05:01.259 with our domestic and international partners, 79 00:05:01.259 --> 00:05:05.513 we are working to better understand the big picture view of how our climate 80 00:05:05.513 --> 00:05:09.392 has changed in the past, observe how it's changing now and then improve 81 00:05:09.392 --> 00:05:12.520 our predictions of the future to build more resilient societies. 82 00:05:20.945 --> 00:05:23.281 Well, Earth happens to be my favorite planet also. 83 00:05:23.281 --> 00:05:24.741 It's where we all live. 84 00:05:24.741 --> 00:05:29.829 And so it's a really critical piece of of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA. 85 00:05:30.246 --> 00:05:33.207 And the other thing is, is that by looking at our Earth, 86 00:05:33.207 --> 00:05:36.836 we are starting to understand more about exoplanets, the planets 87 00:05:37.045 --> 00:05:40.715 beyond our solar system, places that may have life. 88 00:05:40.840 --> 00:05:44.802 And so looking at the atmosphere of our planet, we then look to, to 89 00:05:45.053 --> 00:05:48.014 with the James Webb Space Telescope, for example, to see where 90 00:05:48.014 --> 00:05:51.976 other planets may have, habitable environments for the future. 91 00:05:51.976 --> 00:05:56.189 So one of the unique things at NASA is we look across our portfolio 92 00:05:56.189 --> 00:05:59.984 to understand our atmosphere, how the sun interacts 93 00:05:59.984 --> 00:06:04.155 with with Earth and other planets all the way out to the cosmos. 94 00:06:11.204 --> 00:06:13.873 Well, if this excites you as much as it excites me, 95 00:06:13.873 --> 00:06:18.127 you can go to NASA.gov, slash Earth [nasa.gov/earth] or at NASA Earth [@NASAEarth] 96 00:06:18.336 --> 00:06:22.382 to get information about what you just saw, as well as access 97 00:06:22.382 --> 00:06:26.803 to the free and open data that NASA provides to look and study Earth.