The UPC controls the sensors of the SMOS mission to the European Space Agency to study climate change

Thanks to the sensor view (Microwave Imaging Radiometer by Aperture Synthesis - a new concept of radiometer designed by researchers in the Group of Radiometry of the UPC-) space mission SMOS of Esa made first systematic and global measures of the soil moisture and surface salinity of the seatwo basic geophysical variables in Earth's climate system and to allow monitoring the sustainable development of natural resources.

The Mission serves to improve the knowledge on climate in the coming years, particularly in areas related to the water cycle, climate change, desertification, or the greenhouse effect.

The SMOS satellite will provide maps of moisture of the soil and salinity of the oceans which until now had never been able to obtain from space. "The mission, which has a planned duration of three years and is the first European space history directed by Spain, is part of the program" living planet ", designed to advance the knowledge of the behaviour of the Earth and develop new technologies for observation from space. Salinity, for example, affect the movement of bodies of water in the oceans resulting in the formation of climatic phenomena known as 'El Niño' or 'La Niña', giving rise to great droughts or floods. The evaporation and filtration depend on the degree of humidity of the soil and the water content of vegetation, which are key to understanding the hydrological cycle and monitor the reserves of fresh water on the planet.