create nasa-pace index

Signed-off-by: Ian Carroll <[email protected]>

Author: itcarroll

topics/nasa-pace/index.md

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+---
+topic: nasa-pace
+display_name: NASA's PACE Mission
+short_description: An Earth-observing satellite mission for Plankton, Aerosols, Clouds, and ocean Ecosystems.
+url: https://pace.gsfc.nasa.gov/
+logo: pace_decal_288px
+related: nasa
+---
+
+PACE launched into Earth orbit on 2024-02-08 and is extending and improving NASA's over 20-year satellite observation record of global ocean biology, aerosols (tiny particles suspended in the atmosphere), and clouds.
+The mission aims to assess ocean health by measuring the distribution of phytoplankton (tiny plants and algae that sustain the marine food web).
+It also improves measurement of key atmospheric variables associated with air quality and Earth's climate.
+
+There are two science instruments on the PACE satellite:
+- The Ocean Color Instrument (**OCI**) is a spectrometer that measures intensity of light over portions of the electromagnetic spectrum: ultraviolet (UV), visible, near infrared, and several shortwave infrared bands.
+  OCI enables continuous measurement of light at finer wavelength resolution than previous NASA ocean color sensors, providing detailed information on our global ocean.
+  The color of the ocean is determined by the interaction of sunlight with substances or particles present in seawater such as chlorophyll, a green photosynthetic pigment found in phytoplankton and land plants.
+- The multi-angle polarimeters **HARP2** and **SPEXone** are radiometers that measures how the oscillation of sunlight within a geometric plane - known as its polarization - is changed by passing through clouds, aerosols, and the ocean.
+  Measuring polarization states of UV-to-shortwave light at various angles provides new information on the atmosphere and clouds, such as particle size and composition.