Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)

NASA Earth Scientist Elected to National Academy of Sciences – NASA

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NASA Earth Scientist Elected to National Academy of Sciences – NASA

Earth scientist Compton J. Tucker has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences for his work creating innovative tools to track the planet’s changing vegetation from space. It’s research that has spanned nearly 50 years at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where he is a visiting scientist after retiring in March.  … Read more

NASA Data Helps Map Tiny Plankton That Feed Giant Right Whales – NASA Science

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NASA Data Helps Map Tiny Plankton That Feed Giant Right Whales – NASA Science

In the waters off New England, one of Earth’s rarest mammals swims slowly, mouth agape. The North Atlantic right whale filters clouds of tiny reddish zooplankton — called Calanus finmarchicus — from the sea. These zooplankton, no bigger than grains of rice, are the whale’s lifeline. Only about 370 of these massive creatures remain. For … Read more

NASA Scientists Find New Human-Caused Shifts in Global Water Cycle – NASA

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NASA Scientists Find New Human-Caused Shifts in Global Water Cycle – NASA

In a recently published paper, NASA scientists use nearly 20 years of observations to show that the global water cycle is shifting in unprecedented ways. The majority of those shifts are driven by activities such as agriculture and could have impacts on ecosystems and water management, especially in certain regions. “We established with data assimilation … Read more

Icelandic Cyclones – NASA

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Icelandic Cyclones – NASA

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer flying aboard NASA’s Terra satellite took this picture of two cyclones near Iceland on Nov. 20, 2006. Though we usually think of cyclones occurring in the tropics, these spiraling storms can also form at mid- and high latitudes. Cyclones at these latitudes are actually fairly common, and they drive much … Read more

Sea Ice Swirls – NASA

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Sea Ice Swirls – NASA

NASA’s Terra satellite captured floating fragments of sea ice as ocean currents carried them south along Greenland’s east coast on June 4, 2024. This ice traveled from the Fram Strait, a 450-kilometer (280-mile)-wide passage between Greenland and Svalbard, to the Arctic Ocean. Along the journey, it breaks into smaller pieces and starts to melt in … Read more

Modeling the Hawaiian Shoreline – NASA

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Modeling the Hawaiian Shoreline – NASA

NASA/Lisa Tanh, Matilda Anokye, Ian Lee, Connor Racette The island of Hawai’i and surrounding waters glow in unusual shades in this 2022 model made through NASA DEVELOP. The model was created to help the County of Hawai’i in their shoreline setback plan. The image shows areas of high flood risk (blue), as well as sea … Read more