[4] These and other uses of PACE data are expected to benefit the economy and society according to NASA, especially sectors that rely on water quality, fisheries and food security.

[12] The Pre-Aerosol, Cloud, and ocean Ecosystem satellite (PACE)[13] was approved to move forward out of its preliminary stage of planning on 16 June 2016 at the Key Decision Point-A (KDP-A) event.

Improved characterization of aerosol particles will enable quantifying their impact on marine biology and ocean chemistry, as well as Earth's energy budget and ecological forecasting.

The color of the ocean is determined by the interaction of sunlight with substances or particles present in seawater such as chlorophyll, a green pigment found in most phytoplankton species.

After first stage separation, the Falcon 9 booster performed a boostback burn and returned to land on the launch site, where it will be refurbished and reused on future flights.

The choice to launch PACE from Florida was simply a matter of convenience, due to it being located closer to the Goddard Space Flight Center, where the mission is operated.