Mud Matters   
       
   Feb 6, 2015: Water may be the most influential substance on Earth.  It covers   
   more than 70% of our planet's surface, plays a key role in weather and   
   climate, and nurtures life itself.  Earth's deep oceans are unique in the   
   solar system, and their globe-spanning majesty, as seen from space, is a   
   testament to the primacy of "H2O."   
       
   Oceans, however, are just the most eye-catching repositories of water.  The   
   substance can be found in lesser amounts in almost every nook and cranny of   
   the planet, and researchers know it is important to keep track of water   
   everywhere.   
       
   For example... in mud.   
       
   http://youtu.be/ToO-tS-X2U4   
       
   A new ScienceCast video explores the importance of moist soils in the Earth   
   system.  Play it   
       
   Believe it or not, NASA has just launched a satellite that can track water in   
   the muddy slosh under your feet, as well as other forms of water in the   
   ground.  The name of the mission is SMAP-short for "Soil Moisture Active   
   Passive."   
       
   The satellite left Earth on Jan. 31st, rocketing into the sky onboard a United   
   Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.   
       
   There's more to soil moisture than mud, of course. "With data from SMAP,   
   scientists and decision makers around the world will be better equipped to   
   understand how Earth works as a system," says Christine Bonniksen, SMAP   
   program executive at NASA headquarters.  "It will show us the down-to-Earth   
   impacts of soil moisture, from floods and drought to weather and crop yield   
   forecasts."   
       
   SMAP senses soil moisture using an extraordinary mesh antenna; a large   
   six-meter, mesh reflector antenna will deploy like a pop-up tent and spin,   
   lasso-style, at approximately14 revolutions per minute.  Thru this antenna,   
   both the radar actively pinging the ground below with microwaves and the   
   passive radiometer listening to the earth's emissions, can gauge the moisture   
   in soils along the satellite's ground track.  Circling Earth in a 426-mile   
   altitude, near-polar orbit, SMAP will be able to produce high resolution   
   "moisture maps" every three days.   
       
   Water in the soil can exist in many forms. As it orbits, SMAP will be able to   
   detect whether the ground within its 3 kilometer wide "footprint" is frozen or   
   thawed. This capability, which is unique to SMAP, will assist scientists in   
   determining the growing season length and how much carbon plants are removing   
   from the atmosphere each year, thus improving our current understanding of   
   global warming.   
       
   Additionally, SMAP will enhance our ability to respond to weather-related   
   catastrophes by contributing to flood prediction and drought monitoring.   
       
   "Soils are like sponges," explains Erika Podest, a scientist on the SMAP team   
   at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "They can hold a certain amount of water.   
   If we know the amount of water in the soils and we know that there's a big   
   rainstorm coming, for example, and that the soils are near saturation, then we   
   can predict that that area might be at risk for flooding."   
       
   Clearly, mud does a lot more than just lie underfoot. The data gathered by the   
   SMAP mission will be invaluable both within and beyond the science lab.   
       
   Says Podest confidently, "I think it has the potential to touch everyone's   
   life."   
       
   Credits:   
       
   Authors: Rachel Molina, Dr. Tony Phillips | Production editor: Dr. Tony   
   Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA   
       
       
   Regards,   
       
   Roger   
      
   --- D'Bridge 3.99   
    * Origin: NCS BBS - Houma, LoUiSiAna (1:3828/7)