For the second year in a row, California’s largest reservoir filled to nearly 100 percent capacity.
The nutrient-loaded Northern California lake turned green with algal growth in spring 2024.
Braided rivers, landslide debris, and alluvial fans are spread across this dynamic landscape in Glacier Bay National Park.
Published May 28, 2024
President Lyndon Johnson recognized this small town in upstate New York for being among the first to celebrate Memorial Day.
Published May 27, 2024
In central Asia, jagged mountain peaks rise high above the steppe.
Published May 26, 2024
Everything’s bigger in Canada’s Wood Buffalo National Park, where unique wildlife, plains, wetlands, and animal-engineered landscapes all exist on a grand scale.
Published May 25, 2024
The Brunt Ice Shelf lost a large wedge of floating ice, the third sizeable iceberg to calve from the shelf in recent years.
Published May 23, 2024
Destructive winds left many people in the most populous city in Texas without power.
Published May 22, 2024Image of the Day Severe Storms Human Presence Remote Sensing
Contrasting colors of lava and ash reveal the geologic origins of Harrat Khaybar’s volcanic cones.
Published May 22, 2024
Your challenge is to tell us the location of the satellite image and why it is interesting.
Published May 21, 2024
Strong winds kicked up sand and dust from China’s vast Taklimakan Desert.
Published May 20, 2024
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
Ancient hominin fossils lie beneath the sandy soils on the outskirts of this village in southern Spain.
Published May 20, 2024
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.
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.
Farmers grow a variety of crops along river floodplains near Lyon.
Published May 19, 2024
Large tidal swings expose a plateau-shaped reef around Australia’s Yawajaba island at low tide.
Published May 18, 2024
What do you do when presented with a new satellite image? Here's what the Earth Observatory team does to understand the view.
Published Nov 18, 2013
Participants in NASA's Aurorasaurus project captured these images during the May 2024 geomagnetic storm.
Published May 15, 2024
Using instruments old and new, scientists collected data as leaves emerged across a deciduous forest in Edgewater, Maryland.
Published May 6, 2024
NASA satellites document how our world—forests, oceans, human landscapes, even the Sun—changes over months, seasons, and years.
Published Apr 29, 2009
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.
12 months of high-resolution global true color satellite imagery.
Published Oct 13, 2005
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
Warmer-than-average temperatures are showing up locally and globally, with consequences for people, landscapes, and ecosystems.
Published Aug 15, 2023
The 2023 season runs from June 1 to November 30, with peak activity generally occurring in September.
Published Jun 1, 2023
Wildland fires in 2023 brought hazy skies and poor air quality to several countries north of the equator.
Published May 22, 2023
From soil conditions to crop productivity, satellite data help inform farmers, scientists, and decision-makers in the U.S. and around the world.
Published Feb 28, 2023
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.
Over the years, astronauts aboard the orbiting laboratory have snapped spectacular photographs of Earth’s snow and ice in both hemispheres.
Published Dec 21, 2022
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.
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.
In honor of our site anniversary, we offer a selection of some of the most beautiful, newsworthy, interesting, and scientifically important images from 23 years online — one image for each day of the calendar year.
Published Apr 26, 2022
