2013 sea-surface topography

Average sea-surface topography for 2013 as mapped by CryoSat combined with data from the ERS-2, Envisat, GFO, Topex/Poseidon and Jason missions. Red represents higher sea levels (up to 20 mm) while blue represents lower areas (down to –20 mm). CryoSat’s ground-tracks are seen as long ‘strips’. It can be seen that CryoSat reaches higher latitudes compared to previous radar altimeter missions, and can capture a high-degree of mesoscale activity in the Gulf Stream.