The Argentine satellite SAC-D (SAC-D/Aquarius) recently reached the Vandenberg launch site in the United States, for the final stage of preparations and checks culminating in its launch on June 9.
The satellite is the result of the work of the CONAE (Argentina Space Agency) and organizations from several countries that have participated in the project. Among them are NASA (the partner), the space agencies of Italy, France and Canada, and the National Institute for Technological Research (INPE).
The main contractor for the manufacture of the satellite is INVAP in the city of Bariloche, Black River Province, Argentina.
NASA, among other things, provides the Aquarius instrument that will map the concentration of salt dissolved in the ocean's surface, scientists will use information to study the role of the sea in the global water cycle and how does this relate to ocean currents and climate.The temperature at the sea surface has been monitored by satellites for decades, but it is the combination of temperature and salinity that determines the density of surface waters of the sea. Aquarius
provide important information about ocean surface salinity, which will be useful for scientists to obtain more detailed knowledge of ocean circulation determined by the density, as well as how it is linked to changes in precipitation and evaporation, and its effect on climate variability, among other issues.
SAC-D/Aquarius The satellite will collect data continuously, as they fly by almost polar orbit and complete a lap around the Earth about 14 or 15 times each day. The field of view of the instrument is 390 miles from end to end. All this will provide a global map every seven days. 
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