From their home on the International Space Station, astronauts have a view unlike anything most of us will ever see. Over 20 years, they have shot millions of photographs of Earth, and it is not just a hobby. It is an important scientific job, and one they need to be trained to do. Learn more about the challenges of watching Earth from above.
The category 4 storm caused deadly flooding and landslides in Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala.
The Sierra Madre Oriental is part of a chain that stretches across three continents.
Published Nov 27, 2020
A plume of mineral-rich dust filled the skies over Cyprus and the Mediterranean on a summer’s day.
Published Nov 26, 2020
Cyclone Gati became the strongest storm to hit the country on record, bringing more than a year’s worth of rain in two days.
Published Nov 25, 2020
Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich will extend a nearly 30-year continuous dataset on sea surface height.
Published Nov 24, 2020Image of the Day Atmosphere Land Human Presence Remote Sensing
One of the tallest tsunami waves known to science slammed this Alaskan bay in 1958.
Published Nov 23, 2020
A towering thunder cloud stands at the intersection of moist tropical air and dry, dusty plumes.
Published Nov 22, 2020
Tidal swings here are greater than at any other place on the east coast of Australia.
Published Nov 21, 2020
In the wake of three typhoons within a month, the Philippines provinces of Cagayan and Isabela have seen some of their worst flooding in decades.
Published Nov 19, 2020
After severe hurricanes dropped torrential rain on Guatemala, Nicaragua, and other countries, NASA researchers worked to map potential landslide hazards.
Published Nov 18, 2020Image of the Day Land Severe Storms Human Presence Remote Sensing
Burning leftover straw after the rice harvest has once again blanketed the region with smoke.
Published Nov 17, 2020
It is the largest estuary in the United States and third largest in the world. Once sculpted and changed by ice, water, and powerful geologic forces over tens of millions of years, today's Bay is shaped by human forces as well.
Published Dec 1, 2016
Before 2020, only four category 4 or 5 hurricanes had ever made landfall in Nicaragua. Now two are going to land in just two weeks.
Published Nov 16, 2020Image of the Day Heat Land Water Severe Storms Human Presence Remote Sensing
12 months of high-resolution global true color satellite imagery.
Published Oct 13, 2005
Greenness is an important indicator of health for forests, grasslands, and farms. The greenness of a landscape, or vegetation index, depends on the number and type of plants, how leafy they are, and how healthy they are.
Scientists watch as A-68A, currently the planet’s largest iceberg, approaches a remote island in the southern Atlantic Ocean.
Published Nov 16, 2020
These maps show the average amount of water vapor in a column of atmosphere by month. Water vapor is the key precursor for rain and snow and one of the most important greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Airborne aerosols can cause or prevent cloud formation and harm human health. These maps depict aerosol concentrations in the air based on how the tiny particles reflect or absorb visible and infrared light.
Nature’s beauty overtook science for an evening.
Published Nov 15, 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
The satellite constellation has been approved to continue science operations through 2023.
Published Nov 9, 2020 in Notes From the Field
Every month we offer a puzzling satellite image. Your challenge is to tell us what we are looking at, where it is, and why it is interesting.
Published Nov 3, 2020 in Earth Matters
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 Aug 28, 2020
Not all of the fires satellites detect in the Amazon are of equal ecological significance.
Published Oct 30, 2020 in Earth Matters
For 20 years, astronauts have been shooting photos of Earth from the space station. Like everything the astronauts do, they are trained for this job. And like everything they do, there is purpose and intention behind it.
Published Oct 20, 2020
A race is on to figure out whether COVID-19 will wax and wane with the seasons. Atmospheric and hydrologic models produced by NASA and other institutions may be key to that research.
Published Jul 14, 2020
A few decades ago, the idea of predicting a disease outbreak via satellite was science fiction. But today, researchers can use environmental data to predict when and where some diseases are likely to spread.
Published Jul 9, 2020
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.
Published May 1, 2020
Land surface temperatures rise and fall with the heat of the Sun, and they represent how hot or cold the surface would feel to touch. These maps show daytime land temperatures as measured from space.
These maps depict how much hotter or cooler an ocean basin was compared to the long-term average. Temperature anomalies can indicate changes in ocean circulation or the arrival of patterns like El Niño and La Niña.
After five rounds and 56,000 votes, the readers have chosen their favorite. We have a Tournament Earth 2020 champion.
Published Apr 28, 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.
