Congratulations Team PACE

“We finally got our opportunity this morning and made the most of it with the very successful launch of our PACE observatory from the Cape.  Congratulations to everyone for achieving this monumental milestone for NASA and the Earth Science community.  Vince Lombardi, one of football’s greatest coaches, said “Winners are willing to go longer, work harder, and give more than anyone else”.  I want to thank every one of you for being “NASA’s Winners”.  Today you Won!!  We look forward to successfully commissioning PACE and handing off to the operations team for many years of discovery that will benefit all of us daily.”

— Mark Voyton, Project Manager, Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem (PACE)
Goddard Space Flight Center

PACE will help us better understand our ocean and atmosphere by measuring key variables associated with cloud formation, particles and pollutants in the air, and microscopic, floating marine life (phytoplankton). These observations will help us better monitor ocean health, air quality, and climate change.

Launched in February 2024, NASA’s newest Earth-observing satellite, called PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem), will help us better understand how climate change is affecting blooms of ocean phytoplankton. PACE will also help decipher how particles in the air (like dust and smoke) can influence cloud formation and the warming and cooling of the planet.