Hey everybody, welcome back to the Elon Musk Podcast.
This is a show where we discuss the critical Crossroads, The Shape, SpaceX, Tesla X, The Boring Company, and Neuralink, and I'm your host, Will Walden. If you want uninterrupted episodes of the Elon Musk podcast, please go to clubelon.supercast.com to find out how there's a link in the show Notes Just recently, SpaceX successfully launched NASA's Plankton Aerosol Cloud Ocean Ecosystem mission, also called PACE, a nearly $1 billion Environmental Research
satellite. Now, this event took place early on Thursday, despite previous threats to cancel the project. We'll get into that a little bit later. It's pretty juicy, and the mission's goal is to enhance our understanding of climate change by studying the intricate interactions among carbon aerosols and marine life on a
global scale. Now, Karen Saint Germain, the director of NASA's Earth Sciences Division, said that Pace's potential to revolutionize our comprehension of aerosols, clouds, and the global energy balance is one of the key factors for this mission.
She drew parallels between the significance of Pace's contributions to oceanography and the James Webb Space Telescope's contributions to cosmology, emphasizing the mission's expected profound impact on our knowledge of oceanic and terrestrial life right here on our planet Earth. Now the mission faced delays due to adverse weather conditions, but eventually launched from Cape Canaveral, marking a significant achievement for SpaceX.
The Falconite's rocket liftoff was not only a visual spectacle but also a technical milestone, achieving the first polar orbit launch from the East Coast from the US government since 1960. Huge deal in the spaceflight community. Now, Pace's journey to the launchpad was fraught with challenges. This is where we get a little bit of juicy stuff here, including threats of cancellation under the Trump administration.
However, persistent support from the scientific community and the pushback from NASA and the pushback from the public as well, ensured the project's continuation is noted by Jeremy Werndell, PACE project scientist. Now equipped with Advanced Instruments, the PACE satellite aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the interactions between the ocean, the atmosphere, and also the
land. This holistic approach is crucial for unraveling the complexities of Earth's climate system and addressing one of the most significant uncertainties in climate modeling. The mission is expected to offer a high precision data critical for refining computer models used by policymakers, and this data will include real time measurements of aerosol movement, plankton, health and carbon transport, offering invaluable insights into climate
change dynamics. And NASA's officials under score the importance of understanding the interactions between ocean life and the atmosphere in addressing the climate crisis.
The PACE mission is set to provide crucial data on aerosols and their role in cloud formation and weather systems, shedding light on a key scientific mystery of our own planet, Earth. Now with a total cost of $940 million, almost a billion dollars, the PACE mission represents a significant investment in Earth observation technology. It's successful deployment and forthcoming scientific observations which will gather data and will The data will be used for years, decades ahead.
It's expected to begin in about two months. With that data collection. Now we're all waiting for this, and the launch of PACE is part of NASA's broader effort to utilize space based assets to study our own Mother Earth and also the changing climate right here with us now. This mission, along with others like the SWOT mission, aims to revolutionize our understanding of Earth zone's oceans and their role in the global climate system.
Now, NASA's commitment to addressing the climate crisis is evident in its deployment In missions like PACE. Efforts are vital for providing the global community with a lot of data needed to make informed decisions about protecting our planet and all the inhabitants, not only humans but also the animals on our planet. Now, the record-breaking temperatures of the past decade highlight the urgent need for
missions like PACE. By providing a better understanding of carbon exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere, NASA aims to enhance our ability to respond to climate change. Aerosols, while small, play a significant role in Earth's climate by influencing weather, air quality and also the temperature. The PACE missions detailed study of aerosols and improve our understanding of their impact and help identify areas with
poor air quality. Now the oceans of our planet, they cover about 70% of our surface. They remain one of the least understood parts of our planet. PACE aims to change this by offering unprecedented insights into ocean biography and the intricate web of life that they support. Now, Phytoplankton, despite their microscopic size, are crucial for marine ecosystems too, and also the global carbon cycle.
Pace's advanced instruments will allow scientists to study these organisms in unparalleled detail, enhancing our understanding of their role in Earth's biosphere. And the mission's innovative tech will enable researchers to differentiate among thousands of phytoplankton species, providing new insights into marine biodiversity and its implications for the food web, and also carbon sequestration.
Now, the changing conditions of the world's oceans, including rising temperatures and alter nutrient distribution, pose challenges for marine life. Pace's observations will contribute to our understanding of how these changes are affecting phytoplankton communities and by extension, the entire marine ecosystem. And the successful launch of PACE is a huge leap forward in our ability to monitor and understand Earth's climate system.
By providing a more detailed picture of the interactions between the atmosphere, oceans and also the land. This mission will play a crucial role in addressing the challenges posed by climate change. Hey, thank you so much for listening today. I really do appreciate your support. If you could take a second and hit the subscribe or the follow button on whatever podcast platform that you're listening on right now, I greatly appreciate it. It helps out the show tremendously.
And you'll never miss an episode. And each episode is about 10 minutes or less to get you caught. U quickly and please, if you want to support the show even more, go to Patreon Stage Zero and please take care of yourselves and each other and I'll see you tomorrow.