Results for: Human Presence
Managing Fire in Etosha National Park
April 5, 2013Prescribed fires should prevent blazes from raging out of control in one of Namibia’s most prized wildlife preserves. Read more
World of Change: Green Seasons of Maine
February 8, 2013Not many places on Earth have year-round greenery and four distinct seasons. The images in this series show the four seasons of Maine, the most forest-covered state in the U.S.A. Read more
Out of the Blue and Into the Black
December 5, 2012The night is nowhere near as dark as most of us think. In fact, the Earth is never really dark; it twinkles with lights from humans and nature. Read more
Earth at Night 2012
December 5, 2012Scientists are using new images of Earth’s dark side to gain insight on human activity and poorly understood natural events. Read more
Looking Back on Ten Years of Aqua
May 4, 2012Launched on May 4, 2002, NASA's Aqua satellite and its six instruments have provided a decade's worth of unprecedented views of our planet. Here are a few of our favorites. Read more
Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami: Looking Back from Space
March 9, 2012In 2011, the fourth largest earthquake in history rocked the coast of Japan, spawning a devastating tsunami. Satellites and scientists had an unprecedented view of both. This gallery offers a glimpse of the broad scale of the destruction, of the recovery a year later, and of some new scientific understanding that emerged. Read more
Top 11 from 2011
January 23, 2012The most-visited images published in the Earth Observatory from 2011 are featured in this gallery. Read more
Seeing Forests for the Trees and the Carbon: Mapping the World’s Forests in Three Dimensions
January 9, 2012Earth has a carbon problem, and some think trees are the answer. Would it help to plant more? To cut down fewer? Does it matter where? Scientists are working to get a better inventory of the carbon stored in trees. Read more
World of Change: Athabasca Oil Sands
November 29, 2011The Athabasca Oil Sands are at once a source of oil, of economic growth, and of environmental concern. This series of images shows the growth of surface mines around the Athabasca River from 1984 to the present. Read more
World of Change: Seasons of the Indus River
September 12, 2011Fed by glaciers in the Himalayas and Karakorams — and by monsoon rains — the Indus River experiences substantial fluctuations every year. Because the river irrigates 18 million hectares of farmland, the landscape changes along with the river. Read more
Every Flight is a Mission to Planet Earth
July 8, 2011Observing Earth from space is one of the NASA’s longest-standing science experiments. This photo essay pays homage to the unique view of Earth that the space shuttle has delivered for 30 years. Read more
Earth Matters Blog
June 14, 2011Earth is an amazing planet, and the one that matters most to us. Let's have a conversation about it. Read more
Natural Disasters and NASA - What Is The Agency's Role? An Interview with Michael Goodman
May 17, 2011Working with basic researchers, engineers, and applied scientists--and a dozen satellite sensors--Michael Goodman helps assemble and coordinate NASA’s response to natural disasters and hazards. Read more
We Can See Clearly Now: ISS Window Observational Research Facility
March 4, 2011New optical gear on the International Space Station is giving students and earth scientists a better view of our world. Read more
World of Change: Global Temperatures
December 9, 2010The world is getting warmer, whatever the cause. According to an analysis by NASA scientists, the average global temperature has increased by about 0.8°Celsius (1.4° Fahrenheit) since 1880. Two-thirds of the warming has occurred since 1975. Read more
Aerosols: Tiny Particles, Big Impact
November 2, 2010Tiny aerosol particles can be found over oceans, deserts, mountains, forests, ice sheets, and every ecosystem in between. They drift in the air from the stratosphere to the surface. Despite their small size, they have major impacts on our climate and our health. Read more
Gulf of Mexico Oil Slick Images: Frequently Asked Questions
July 21, 2010This FAQ explains why oil is more obvious in some satellite images than others and why the Earth Observatory doesn't post new images of the oil slick every day. Read more
Climate Q&A
March 9, 2010From why global warming is a problem to whether increased solar activity could be behind it, this Q&A includes responses to common questions about climate change and global warming. Read more
World of Change: Mountaintop Mining, West Virginia
March 2, 2010Based on data from the Landsat satellites, these natural-color images document the growth of the Hobet mine in Boone County, West Virginia, as it expands from ridge to ridge between 1984 and 2012. Read more
World of Change: Yellow River Delta
January 26, 2010Once free to wander up and down the coast of the North China Plain, the Yellow River Delta has been shaped by levees, canals, and jetties in recent decades. Read more
Water Watchers
January 21, 2010In Idaho, NASA’s Landsat satellites are helping officials manage water resources and settle conflicts. Read more
Perspectives: Why EOS Matters, 10 years later
September 8, 2009Nearly a decade ago, ecologist Steve Running described how NASA’s Earth Observing System missions were going to help us answer this crucial question: Is the current human occupancy and activity of planet Earth sustainable? In 2009, he revisited the question, making the case that Earth-observing satellites are more important than ever as humanity begins to deal with a changing climate. Read more
Flying Steady: Mission Control Tunes Up Aqua's Orbit
August 18, 2009It takes work to maintain a satellite’s orbit. In the spring of 2009, mission controllers pilot NASA's Aqua satellite through a series of orbital maneuvers to correct the angle of the satellite’s flight path. Read more
Notes from the Field Blog: Journey to Galapagos
July 16, 2009Following in Darwin's footsteps, NASA oceanographer Gene Feldman explores the remarkable Galapagos Islands. Read more
World of Change: Amazon Deforestation
May 27, 2009The state of Rondônia in western Brazil is one of the most deforested parts of the Amazon. This series shows deforestation on the frontier in the northwestern part of the state between 2000 and 2010. Read more
World of Change: Shrinking Aral Sea
May 19, 2009A massive irrigation project has devastated the Aral Sea over the past 50 years. These images show the decline of the Southern Aral Sea in the past decade, as well as the first steps of recovery in the Northern Aral Sea. Read more
The World We Avoided by Protecting the Ozone Layer
May 14, 2009An international team of scientists used a state-of-the-art computer model to learn “what might have been” if ozone-destroying chemicals had not been banned through the 1989 Montreal Protocol. Read more
World of Change: Mesopotamia Marshes
May 5, 2009In the years following the Persian Gulf War, Iraqi residents began reclaiming the country’s nearly decimated Mesopotamian marshes. This series of images documents the transformation of the fabled landscape between 2000 and 2009. Read more
World of Change: Urbanization of Dubai
April 28, 2009To expand the possibilities for beachfront tourist development, Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates, undertook a massive engineering project to create hundreds of artificial islands along its Persian Gulf coastline. Read more
Urban Rain
December 11, 2006Most city dwellers worry about what the weather will do to their city, but for meteorologist Marshall Shepherd, the real question is what are cities doing to the weather. Read more
Ask-A-Scientist
July 25, 2006Questions from visitors to the Earth Observatory and answers from scientists. Read more
Looking for Lawns
November 8, 2005Move over, corn. According to a satellite-based estimate, lawns constitute the largest area of irrigated crops in America. Read more
The Rising Cost of Natural Hazards
March 30, 2005Disaster-related economic losses topped $145 billion in 2004, the latest in a disturbing upward trend. Has climate change increased the number and severity of natural disasters, or is the rising cost of natural disasters due to other human factors? Read more
Terra Turns Five
March 1, 2005In February 2000, NASA's Terra satellite began measuring Earth's vital signs with a combination of accuracy, precision, and resolution the world had never before seen. While the mission is still in the process of fulfilling its main science objectives, Terra's portfolio of achievements to date already marks the mission a resounding success. Read more
Mayan Mysteries
August 24, 2004Satellite data help scientists understand Mesoamerica's past and point the way toward a brighter future. Read more
A New IDEA in Air Quality Monitoring
August 17, 2004NASA satellite data of regional haze allow EPA scientists to expand their focus from local to regional air quality monitoring and forecasting. Read more
From Forest to Field: How Fire is Transforming the Amazon
June 8, 2004Current estimates of Amazon deforestation may capture less than half of the area degraded by logging and accidental fire. If the current trends continue, the entire Amazon frontier could be transformed into grass or scrubland. Read more
Humans and Climate Destroy Reef Ecosystem
April 13, 2004Using fossilized coral reefs, Nerilie Abram constructed a 7,000-year climate history of cool/warm cycles in the Indian Ocean. In the course of her research she discovered that wildfires in Indonesia during the 1997-98 El Nino indirectly killed the Mentawai Reef. Read more
Drought Lowers Lake Mead
November 28, 2003In the space of just three years, water levels in Lake Mead have fallen more than sixty feet due to sustained drought. Landsat images show the extent of the change to the lake's shoreline. Read more
Just Add Water: a Modern Agricultural Revolution in the Fertile Crescent
September 15, 2003Satellite observations in the Middle East's Fertile Crescent have documented a modern agricultural revolution. The dramatic changes in crop production in southern Turkey over the last decade are the result of new irrigation schemes that tap the historic Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Read more
How on Earth was this Image Made?
March 25, 2003Remotely sensed Earth observations can include everything from sonar measurements used to map the topography of the ocean floor to satellite-based observations of city lights. Combining observations collected by a variety of instruments at different times and places allow scientists to create an otherwise impossible view of the Earth, showing underwater mountain ranges, cloud-free skies, and city lights that are brighter than daylight. Such visualizations are invaluable for interpreting complex data and communicating scientific concepts. Read more
The Human Footprint
February 25, 2003In North America, the black-tailed prairie dog occupies as little as 5 percent of its former habitat. In Madagascar, more than 20 lemur species are threatened with extinction, and at least 15 species are already extinct. And on the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, fewer than 50 mature mandrinette hibiscus plants remain in the wild. Read more
Urbanization's Aftermath
July 15, 2002Researchers have found that by reducing the amount of vegetation over large tracts of land, urbanization may affect the levels of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. Read more
Tais that Bind
March 28, 2002Using GIS techniques and Chinese population and socioeconomic data, linguists trace the origin of Tai dialect in Southeast Asia. Read more
Power to the People
October 5, 2001Thanks to a team at NASA's Langley Research Center (LaRC), engineers and amateur inventors worldwide now have free access to global-scale data on natural renewable energy resources. Private companies are using these data to design, build, and market new technologies for harnessing this energy. The best part is many of these new systems will be marketed at affordable prices in underdeveloped countries for those who need them most. Read more
Measure for Measure
September 10, 2001Governments and policy makers turn to science to better understand the impacts of global sea level rise on coastal cities. Read more
Life on the Brink
August 28, 2001Data demonstrate that populations cluster--in increasingly greater numbers--near active volcanoes. Scientists theorize that while attractions offset perceived risks, such willingness to chance eruptions increases the potential for disaster. Read more
Location, Location, Location
August 15, 2001Scientists review geographic factors to learn why wealth concentrates predominantly in temperate zones. Read more
Precision Farming
January 29, 2001The U.S. Department of Agriculture, NASA, and NOAA are among key agencies contributing to precision farming revolution. The goal is to improve farmers' profits and harvest yields while reducing the negative impacts of farming on the environment that come from over-application of chemicals. Read more
New Tools for Diplomacy
January 12, 2001Remote sensing technology, increasingly crucial to the understanding of Earth's climate and environmental processes, now permits the monitoring of global environmental conditions and the gathering of data that were historically unavailable. Read more
Reaping What We Sow: Mapping the Urbanization of Farmland Using Satellites and City Lights
November 2, 2000Tracking urbanization, the conversion of rural landscape to urban habitat, has always been difficult due to the speed at which it progresses. Recently, NASA scientists came across a solution. Using satellite images of city lights at night, they constructed a map of urbanized areas and integrated this map with a soil map prepared by the United Nations. These maps indicate that urban centers may be destroying their best soils and putting future generations at risk. Read more
Bright Lights, Big City
October 23, 2000For the past six years, researchers have been looking for ways to measure the effects of urbanization on biological productivity in countries around the world. To assist them with their research, they have created a method of mapping urbanization on a countrywide scale by using satellite images of the light cities generate at night. Read more
Adapting to Climate Change
October 13, 2000Teams of scientists and resource planners assess their region’s most critical vulnerabilities in the United States National Assessment on the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change. The report covers agricultural productivity, coastal areas, water resources, forests, and human health. Read more
Changing Our Weather One Smokestack at a Time
August 7, 2000Daniel Rosenfeld and a team of scientists from the Hebrew University of Israel recently discovered that aerosol particles from factories and power plants increase the number of droplets in clouds they pollute. In doing so, the pollutants create brighter clouds that retain their water and do not produce rain. Read more
Flying High for Fine Wine
June 26, 2000NASA and Robert Mondavi Winery researchers worked together to use airborne remote sensing technology to classify grapevines and produce better wine. Read more
Roger Revelle
June 19, 2000Roger Revelle was one of the world's most articulate spokesmen for science and an early predictor of global warming. Read more
Human Impact on the Mojave
June 8, 2000Researchers study long-term effects of disturbances to desert ecosystems. Read more
Svante Arrhenius
January 18, 2000Svante Arrhenius was the first person to investigate the effect that doubling atmospheric carbon dioxide would have on global climate. Read more
Why EOS Matters, 1999
December 17, 1999Nearly a decade ago, ecologist Steve Running described how NASA’s Earth Observing System missions were going to help us answer this crucial question: Is the current human occupancy and activity of planet Earth sustainable? Read more
A Burning Question
November 1, 1999Evidence suggests that atmospheric aerosols from biomass burning may offset global warming caused by greenhouse gases. Read more
Every Cloud Has a Filthy Lining
September 30, 1999Sulfur dioxide in the exhaust from ship engines creates bright clouds. Read more
