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Rings of Rock in the Sahara

In southeastern Libya, Jabal Arkanū’s concentric rock rings stand as relics of past geologic forces that churned beneath the desert.

Image of the Day Land

Cranberry Country, Wisconsin

The tart berry and state fruit brings a red pop to holiday feasts—and to satellite images of Midwestern marshlands.

Image of the Day Human Presence

The Towers of Tràng An

Over millions of years, water has sculpted limestone in northern Vietnam into an extraordinary karst landscape full of towers, cones, caves, and subterranean waterways.

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

A Direct Hit on Jamaican Forests 

Hurricane Melissa left the island nation’s forests brown and battered, but they won’t stay that way for long.

Image of the Day Atmosphere Land Life Human Presence

Rewilding South Africa's Greater Kruger

Satellites are helping land managers track ecological shifts as reserves reconnect and landscapes return to a more natural state.

Image of the Day Land

Autumn in the Ozarks

Late-season reds and browns swept across the Ozark Highlands in the south-central U.S.

Image of the Day Land

Iraq Reservoirs Plunge to Low Levels

A multi-year drought has put extra strain on farmers and water managers in the Middle Eastern country.  

Image of the Day Land Water

Chlorophyll

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.

Life Water

Fire

Whether started by humans (farming, logging, or accidents) or by nature (lightning), fires are always burning somewhere on Earth. These maps show the locations of fires burning around the world each month.

Land

World of Change

NASA satellites document how our world—forests, oceans, human landscapes, even the Sun—changes over months, seasons, and years.

Atmosphere Heat Land Life Human Presence Snow and Ice

Reservoirs Dwindle in South Texas

Drought in the Nueces River basin is reducing reservoir levels, leaving residents and industry in the Corpus Christi area facing water shortages.

Image of the Day Water Temperature Extremes

Antarctic Sea Ice Saw Its Third-Lowest Maximum

Sea ice around the southernmost continent hit one of its lowest seasonal highs since the start of the satellite record.

Image of the Day Snow and Ice

Snow Cover

Snow and ice influence climate by reflecting sunlight back into space. When it melts, snow is a source of water for drinking and vegetation; too much snowmelt can lead to floods. These maps show average snow cover by month.

Snow and Ice

Land Surface Temperature Anomaly

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.

Heat Land

Aerosol Size

Sea salt, volcanic ash, dust, wildfire smoke, and industrial pollution are types of airborne aerosols. Natural aerosols tend to be larger than human-made aerosols. These maps show when and where aerosols come from nature, humans, or both.

Atmosphere

Puerto Rico From Above

An astronaut photographed the island’s striking mix of mountains, forests, and expanding urban areas.

Image of the Day Land

How to Interpret a Satellite Image: Five Tips and Strategies

What do you do when presented with a new satellite image? Here's what the Earth Observatory team does to understand the view.

Remote Sensing

A Desert Intersection

A colorful ridge and winding glacial meltwater river meet amidst dune fields in western China.

Image of the Day Land

Imelda and Humberto Crowd the Atlantic

The tropical cyclones are close enough in proximity that they may influence one another.

Image of the Day Atmosphere Severe Storms

2024 North Atlantic Hurricane Season

Hurricane season in the basin runs from June 1 to November 30.

Atmosphere

Renewable and Alternative Energy

People have developed systems to harvest and store energy from sources such as wind, sunlight, and tidal action. Many of these installations are visible from orbit.

Land Human Presence

Air Quality

From ground-level ozone to particulate matter to nitrogen dioxide, an array of gasses and particles can affect the air people breathe, with implications for human health.

Atmosphere Human Presence

Temperature Extremes 2024

Warmer-than-average temperatures are showing up locally and globally, with consequences for people, landscapes, and ecosystems.

Heat

Blue Marble Next Generation

12 months of high-resolution global true color satellite imagery.

Atmosphere Land Water Snow and Ice

2024 Fires in the Northern Hemisphere

Whether sparked by lightning, intentional land-clearing, or human-caused accidents, wildland fires are burning longer and more often in some areas as the world warms.

Atmosphere Land Human Presence

Mission: Biomes

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.

Land Life

Earth at Night

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.

Atmosphere Land Human Presence Remote Sensing

Land Surface Temperature

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.

Heat Land