The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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The tidal flows of Earth’s salty seawater across Earth’s magnetic field lines generate electric currents within the ocean. These in turn induce secondary magnetic fields that form part of the planet’s complex magnetic field signal that can be detected from space. ESA’s Swarm satellites can measure these tiny oceanic magnetic fields and distinguish them from other magnetic fields such as those from the core, ionosphere, magnetosphere and magnetised crust. This data can be used to study physical properties of suboceanic materials as well as to understand more about the salinity and temperature of our oceans.
Read full story: Swarm detects tidal signatures of our oceans.