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Studying Earth's Gravity

New data on how water moves around Earth answer old questions about the planet's rotation.

NASA Study Solves Two Mysteries About Wobbling Earth

New data on how water moves around Earth answer old questions about the planet's rotation.
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New NASA satellite data have allowed researchers to identify and quantify, for the first time, how climate-driven increases of liquid water storage on land have affected sea level rise.

Study: Rising Seas Slowed by Increasing Water on Land

New GRACE data have allowed researchers to identify and quantify, for the first time, how climate-driven increases of liquid water storage on land have affected sea level rise.
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NASA and university scientists have developed a new way to use satellite measurements to track changes in Atlantic Ocean currents, which are a driving force in global climate.

NASA Finds New Way to Track Ocean Currents from Space

NASA and university scientists have developed a new way to use satellite measurements to track changes in Atlantic Ocean currents, which are a driving force in global climate.
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Seas around the world have risen an average of nearly 3 inches since 1992, with some locations rising more than 9 inches due to natural variation, according to the latest satellite measurements from NASA and its partners.

NASA Zeroes in on Sea Level Rise

Intensive research, aided by NASA research, points to an unavoidable future sea level rise of several feet. The question is, how quickly will it happen?
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NASA's Earth Minute - Scale in the Sky

NASA's Earth Minute: Scale in the Sky

Did you know gravity not only keeps your feet on the ground, but also allows NASA to monitor Earth's water and ice from space? Learn about the twin satellites named GRACE and how they help us predict droughts, floods and groundwater depletion, in the newest NASA's Earth Minute video.
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Data Updates

  • June 2, 2016

    JPL Global Mascon grids through 06/2016, Version-2 released!

    Please visit the JPL Mascson data page for more information on the Version-2 data processing changes, and links to the data grids (via JPL-PO.DAAC).
    Please visit the JPL Mascson data page for more information on the Version-2 data processing changes, and links to the data grids (via JPL-PO.DAAC). less
  • March 28, 2016

    Tellus OCEAN grids processed through 03/2016

    GRACE Ocean Bottom Pressure grids (JPL, CSR, GFZ) are now available through 03/2016. Please visit the Ocean grid data page for more details and links to the data files.
    GRACE Ocean Bottom Pressure grids (JPL, CSR, GFZ) are now available through 03/2016. Please visit the Ocean grid data page for more details and links to the data files. less
  • March 21, 2016

    Tellus LAND grids processed through 03/2016

    GRACE Total Land Water Storage grids (JPL, CSR, GFZ) are now available through 03/2016. Please visit the Land grid data page for more details and links to the data.
    GRACE Total Land Water Storage grids (JPL, CSR, GFZ) are now available through 03/2016. Please visit the Land grid data page for more details and links to the data. less

Top Data Sets

  • JPL Global Land / Ocean Mascons (RL05M_1.v02)

    JPL Global Land / Ocean Mascons (RL05M_1.v02)

    JPL's global mascons (land water storage & ocean bottom pressure) from GRACE are updated monthly, and are provided on 0.5-degree global grid.
  • GRACE Tellus LAND Grids

    GRACE Tellus LAND Grids

    Land water storage from GRACE is updated monthly, and is provided on 1-degree global grids.
  • Interactive Data Browsers

    Interactive Data Browsers

    The data browsers allow the interactive retrieval of GRACE Land data over river basins, as well as the evaluation of long-term trends and mean seasonal amplitudes. Courtesy of U. of Colorado / Boulder.

Applications

Hydrology

Groundwater is a useful indicator of climate variability and human impacts on the environment.

Land Ice

GRACE resolves the mass balance of grounded ice sheets, glaciers and ice caps.

Solid Earth

GRACE yields insights into Solid Earth changes from earthquakes glacial isostatic adjustment.

Ocean

GRACE measures sea level rise from melting ice, changes in deep ocean currents.

GRACE Follow-On

Launching in 2017, GRACE Follow-on (GRACE-FO) will continue GRACE's legacy of tracking Earth's water movement to monitor changes in underground water storage, the amount of water stored in large lakes and rivers, soil moisture, ice sheets and glaciers, and sea level caused by the addition of water to the ocean. These discoveries provide a unique view of Earth's climate and have far-reaching benefits to society and the world's population.

Featured Multimedia

  • The force of gravity not only keeps us from floating away, it also lets NASA study Earth’s water and ice from space. Using a pair of twin satellites named "GRACE," we can monitor where our planet’s water is going, even when it is underground.

    Scale in the Sky

    The force of gravity not only keeps us from floating away, it also lets NASA study Earth’s water and ice from space. Using a pair of twin satellites named "GRACE," we can monitor our planet’s water.

  • Amazon Basin seasonal hydrology

    Amazon Basin seasonal hydrology

    These images show the changes in gravity anomalies from GRACE over the Amazon Basin for each month of 2004. 

  • GRACE Sees Groundwater Losses Around the World

    GRACE Sees Groundwater Losses Around the World

    NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) has measured significant groundwater depletion around the world in recent years. These animations show trends in total water storage from Jan. 2003 to Dec. 2009 as measured by GRACE, depicting accumulated groundwater losses over time in Australia, California’s Central Valley and the Middle East, and monthly anomalies in total water storage over the same timeframe in the Indian Subcontinent.