ICESat-2

The Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2, is NASA’s most technologically advanced ice-monitoring spacecraft to date. Capable of measuring changes in ice thickness, forest growth and cloud height down to 0.02 inches (0.4 millimeters) every year. ICESat-2 offers scientists an unprecedented view of Earth’s changing systems, especially at its poles.

• Watching and understanding how ice is changing helps understand why it’s changing. In turn, the information will sharpen environmental-prediction models and help scientists better forecast rising sea levels and climate shifts because of melting ice.