The U.S. and India just launched NISAR, a powerful radar satellite that will be able to monitor changes in Earth's surface that are as small as a centimeter.

NISAR will provide scientists with valuable data as it monitors ice-sheet changes, sea-level rises, ecosystems shifts and more. According to NASA, the satellite will scan forests and wetlands and study both human-driven and natural changes to these environments.

NASA announced Wednesday it, in a partnership with the Indian Space Research Organization, has launched a radar system to map Earth as never before.