NASA scientists employed a pixel-tracking method to reveal how much the ground shifted during one of the largest documented surface ruptures of its type.
Fires in these coastal forests can rejuvenate ecosystems but also threaten large numbers of people and homes in the densely populated state.
A sprawling natural amphitheater interrupts the green slopes of this mountainous area.
Published Apr 27, 2025
The national park west of mainland Florida includes a smattering of islands, but the vast majority of the park’s acreage lies underwater.
Published Apr 26, 2025
The volcanic features and otherworldly landscape of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve are apt training grounds for planetary exploration.
Published Apr 24, 2025
A national recreation area and state park protect an archipelago made of glacial debris in eastern Massachusetts.
Published Apr 23, 2025
Your challenge is to use the comments section to tell us where it is, what we are looking at, and why it is interesting.
Published Apr 22, 2025
The peaks in Guadalupe Mountains National Park—some of the highest in Texas—are made of a well-preserved fossil reef formed more than 250 million years ago.
Published Apr 22, 2025
The Channel Islands off the coast of southern California support diverse ecosystems, with some plants and animals found nowhere else on the planet.
Published Apr 21, 2025
The large metropolis, fringed by scenic coastline, stretches across two continents.
Published Apr 20, 2025
Despite its stately and serene appearance, the Alaskan volcano has shown signs of activity since spring 2024.
Published Apr 19, 2025
A thick dust plume in the Middle East dimmed skies and sent thousands to the hospital in April 2025.
Published Apr 17, 2025
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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
NASA satellites document how our world—forests, oceans, human landscapes, even the Sun—changes over months, seasons, and years.
Published Apr 29, 2009
Folds of rusted rock neighbor the Bighorn Canyon’s deep scar in the western United States.
Published Apr 17, 2025
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
A major embayment in West Antarctica saw new sea ice growth in autumn 2025 amid older sea ice that had survived the austral summer melt season.
Published Apr 16, 2025
Hurricane season in the basin runs from June 1 to November 30.
Published Jul 1, 2024
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.
Published May 10, 2024
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.
Published Apr 8, 2024
Warmer-than-average temperatures are showing up locally and globally, with consequences for people, landscapes, and ecosystems.
Published Mar 26, 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.
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.
Published Feb 27, 2024
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.
Warmer-than-average temperatures are showing up locally and globally, with consequences for people, landscapes, and ecosystems.
Published Aug 15, 2023
