Recent Imagery
You will be directed to the NASA Visible Earth webpage when you select Images by Mission below, or click on the images at right that are randomly generated to represent four out of all possible topics.
You are here
Missions: ESSP
Missions in the NASA Earth System Science (ESSP) program are characterized by innovative design and relatively rapid implementation. These are focused missions that uniquely examine important components and physical processes within the global climate systems, including atmospheric CO2 distribution, sea surface salinity variation, mass water movement, and the vertical structure of clouds and aerosols.
To learn more about the program, visit http://nasascience.nasa.gov/about-us/smd-programs/earth-system-science-pathfinder.
| Mission | Mission Category | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Aquarius | Completed | |
 |
Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) | Current, Extended Mission | |
 |
CloudSat | Current, Extended Mission | |
 |
Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) | Current | |
 |
Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation Lidar (GEDI on ISS) | Future, Formulation | |
 |
Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) | Current, Extended Mission | |
 |
Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) | Future, Formulation | |
 |
Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) | Launch Failure | |
 |
Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 (OCO-2) | Current | |
 |
Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 (ISS-OCO-3) | Future, Implementation |