The Soil Moisture Active Passive mission is NASAÃ¢Â€Â™s firstEarth-observing satellite mission designed to collectglobal observations of surface soil moisture and itsfreeze/thaw state, data that have broad applications forscience and society. High-resolution space-based measurementsof soil moisture and whether the soil is frozenor thawed will give scientists a new capability to observeand predict natural hazards of extreme weather, climatechange, floods and droughts, and will help reduce uncertaintiesin our understanding of EarthÃ¢Â€Â™s water, energyand carbon cycles.