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NASA satellites and sensors constantly take the pulse of our planet. Researchers apply those observations on local and regional scales to better manage things like food and water supplies, health, safety, land use, and ecosystems.
Millions of people prepared to evacuate as the storm approached eastern India and Bangladesh.
Many memorable Star Wars scenes were filmed in the deserts of Tunisia.
Published May 22, 2020
With most lockdowns ending and economic activity resuming, levels of the air pollutant have returned to near normal for this time of year.
Published May 22, 2020Image of the Day Atmosphere Life Dust and Haze Human Presence Remote Sensing
Iconic scenes from the original Star Wars movie were filmed in a Tunisian fishing town.
Published May 22, 2020
Divided by the Danube River, the city is actually a unification of three different older communities.
Published May 22, 2020
Two days of heavy rain led to catastrophic dam failures and major flooding in Midland County.
Published May 21, 2020
First-of-a-kind maps show how the depth of this insulating snow layer changes from month to month.
Published May 21, 2020
After 18 days in quarantine and multiple tests for coronavirus, leg 4 participants in the MOSAiC expedition head north to meet the RV Polarstern.
Published May 21, 2020 in Notes From the Field
The first tropical cyclone of the 2020 season in the North Indian basin made landfall, delivering substantial storm surge to coastal areas.
Published May 20, 2020
South America’s second-largest forest has been experiencing rapid tree losses in recent decades.
Published May 19, 2020
Recognize this place? Your challenge is to use the comments section to tell us what we are looking at, where it is, and why it is interesting.
Published May 19, 2020 in Earth Matters
Among the byproducts of the pandemic and social distancing is a drop in forest management fires on federal lands.
Published May 18, 2020
In May 1980, a satellite watched the mountain violently erupt; satellites over the next forty years watched it recover.
Published May 15, 2020
EO Kids is discovering more about Earth’s ozone layer and about what happens when it gets damaged. Plus, create your own ozone hole map in our “Data Viz” activity: “Mapping Ozone.”
Published May 15, 2020 in EO Kids
Clouds formed over rural areas and the cities but are noticeably absent above Guanabara Bay and the ocean due to the mechanisms of cloud formation.
Published May 15, 2020
A layer of marine stratocumulus clouds off the west coast of Africa displayed some particularly complex wave patterns.
Published May 14, 2020
Net radiation is the balance between incoming and outgoing energy at the top of the atmosphere. It is the total energy available to influence climate after light and heat are reflected, absorbed, or emitted by clouds and land.
The first typhoon of the year in the Western Pacific was later than usual and quite potent.
Published May 14, 2020Image of the Day Atmosphere Land Severe Storms Human Presence
Scientists are concerned about the stability of a glacier that could significantly raise sea level.
Published May 12, 2020Image of the Day Heat Land Water Snow and Ice Remote Sensing
12 months of high-resolution global true color satellite imagery.
Published Oct 13, 2005
Water has stopped pouring from the broken wall of the Sardoba Reservoir, but many areas are still submerged.
Published May 11, 2020
Dust storms are common in the region, and sometimes bear resemblance to weather events on Mars.
Published May 8, 2020
In 2002, Earth Observatory published one of the site’s most popular images: the Great Bahama Bank. Eighteen years later, the science has advanced but the sand has not.
Published May 8, 2020
In a bay off the coast of northwest Africa, conditions are almost always just right for phytoplankton blooms.
Published May 8, 2020
A collapse of the Sardoba Reservoir’s earth-filled dam led to flooding that extended into Kazakhstan.
Published May 8, 2020
After its lava lake drained and the floor dropped, water has been pooling up in the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u crater for several months.
Published May 8, 2020
Just as we were finishing another story about fires in Venezuela, a surprisingly large, dark smoke plume appeared in VIIRS and MODIS imagery.
Published May 8, 2020 in Earth Matters
North Island vegetation shows signs of stress during one the region’s most severe droughts on record.
Published May 7, 2020
After seven decades, sand mining operations have stopped in Australia’s North Stradbroke Island.
Published May 6, 2020
Sea ice geophysicist Melinda Webster was ready to fly to the RV Polarstern for the MOSAiC expedition. Then COVID-19 was declared a pandemic.
Published May 6, 2020 in Notes From the Field
Forest buffers help protect grazing land and animals from the Japanese island's cold, windy winters.
Published May 5, 2020
As several comprehensive NASA-funded research projects get started, here is a quick roundup of some of the more interesting satellite-related findings about the science of coronavirus and its effects on the environment.
Published May 5, 2020 in Earth Matters
Even in China’s largest, driest, and hottest desert, vegetation sprouts in the spring.
Published May 4, 2020
In addition to making rain and snow, clouds can have a warming or cooling influence depending on their altitude, type, and when they form. These maps show what fraction of an area was cloudy each month.
The colossal iceberg from Antarctica’s Larsen-C Ice Shelf finally fractured in April 2020, generating a new 51-square-nm iceberg.
Published May 4, 2020 in Earth Matters
The Stillwater Complex in the Beartooth Mountains contains a mineral that closely resembles the most common mineral on the surface of the Moon.
Published May 1, 2020
These maps show the ‘metabolism” of Earth’s plants and trees. Net primary productivity is the difference between the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed during photosynthesis minus the amount released by respiration.
These maps depict monthly total rainfall around the world. Rainfall is the primary source of fresh water for humans, plants, and animals. Rain also moves heat between the atmosphere, oceans, and land.
An ISS astronaut using a short camera lens captured almost all of Mexico in one shot.
Published May 1, 2020
Satellite images of Earth at night have been a curiosity for the public and a tool of fundamental research for at least 25 years. They have provided a broad, beautiful picture, showing how humans have shaped the planet and lit up the darkness.
Published Apr 12, 2017
Eyjafjörður is a prime destination for whales, scientists, and tourists.
Published May 1, 2020
If no significant rain falls in May 2020, the country could face a drought for the third summer in a row.
Published Apr 30, 2020
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in a different part of the world? What would the weather be like? What kinds of animals would you see? Which plants live there? By investigating these questions, you are learning about biomes.
Published Oct 5, 2000
The curious bear served as a gentle reminder to stay alert while on the ice.
Published Apr 28, 2020 in Notes From the Field
These maps depict anomalies in land surface temperatures (LSTs); that is, how much hotter or cooler a region was compared to the long-term average. LST anomalies can indicate heat waves or cold spells.
After five rounds and 56,000 votes, the readers have chosen their favorite. We have a Tournament Earth 2020 champion.
Published Apr 28, 2020
Vote for your favorite all-time Earth Observatory image. Help narrow the field from 32 nominees down to one champion in a five-round tournament.
Published Mar 26, 2020Atmosphere Land Life Water Snow and Ice Remote Sensing Videos
Pine Island Glacier is one of the fastest-retreating glaciers in Antarctica. Watch the glacier’s ice front as it retreats and sheds some notable icebergs over the past two decades.
Published Feb 13, 2020
The average global temperature has increased by a little more than 1° Celsius (2° Fahrenheit) since 1880. Two-thirds of the warming has occurred since 1975.
Published Jan 29, 2020
Industrialization has brought incredible societal advances and difficult pollution problems. From space, we can see skies clearing in some regions and darkening in others. The thin blue line of our atmosphere is still quite vulnerable.
Published Jun 24, 2014
Scientists create maps of forest cover to understand where the composition and structure of Pacific Northwest forests are sufficient for the threatened species to nest and roost.
Published Jan 3, 2020
Chlorophyll is used by algae and other phytoplankton--the grass of the sea--to convert sunlight and carbon dioxide into sugars. These maps show chlorophyll concentrations in the ocean, revealing where phytoplankton are thriving.
