A series of satellites in a mission between NASA and France's Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales launched on 7 December 2001 to monitor the Earth's oceans for a period of five years. The mission is recording ocean circulation, measuring global sea-level changes, monitoring special natural events, such as El Niño, and exploring the links between the oceans and atmosphere. Jason, with a mass of 500 kg, orbits at an altitude of 1 336 km and carries such instruments as an altimeter, radiometer, and laser retroflector array. It works together with the TOPEX/Poseidon satellite to discover ties between the oceans and the atmosphere. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory is in charge of mission operations. The Jason-1 mission launched in December 2001 and terminated in July 2003; Jason-2 launched in June 2008; and Jason-3 launched in January 2016.