Choose your favorites images from our fire, air, water, and earth brackets.
Spring is peak season for dust in the Taklamakan desert in western China.
The use of plastic on farms has become so common in recent decades that there there’s a term for it—plasticulture.
Published Mar 13, 2022
Fed by mountain streams and a canal, the Murgab and Tedzhen fans are irrigated farming oases in arid Central Asia.
Published Mar 12, 2022
An icebreaker cut through persistent sea ice in the Weddell Sea during an expedition that ultimately located Shackleton’s lost ship.
Published Mar 11, 2022
As many as 300,000 meteorites await discovery atop the continent’s ice, and now scientists have a map showing where to look.
Published Mar 9, 2022
Firefighters contended with strong winds and dry weather as blazes raced through coastal counties.
Published Mar 7, 2022
An instrument designed to measure tree height can also distinguish corn from other crops.
Published Mar 7, 2022
The island chain was once part of a land bridge connecting Tasmania to mainland Australia.
Published Mar 6, 2022
Ancient rock formations provided the foundation for a palace, fortress, moat and expansive water gardens built in the fifth century.
Published Mar 5, 2022
Ocean temperatures can influence weather, such as hurricane formation, and climate patterns, such as El Niño. These maps show the temperature at the surface of the world’s seas and oceans.
12 months of high-resolution global true color satellite imagery.
Published Oct 13, 2005
Scientists found water quality was degraded for months following a Southern California wildfire.
Published Mar 3, 2022
View fire, air, water, and earth as scientists and astronauts see them from space. Then learn where to vote for your favorite.
Published Mar 3, 2022
Several days of torrential rains have inundated coastal towns in Queensland and New South Wales
Published Mar 2, 2022
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
In the span of 20 years, Iceberg B-22A has strayed just 100 kilometers from its birthplace at Thwaites Glacier.
Published Mar 1, 2022
As green chlorophyll fades from trees and plants each autumn, other pigments color the Earth’s landscapes. Satellites take leaf-peeping to a whole new level.
Published Oct 26, 2021
These maps depict monthly total rainfall around the world. Rainfall is the primary source of fresh water for humans, plants, and animals. Rain also moves heat between the atmosphere, oceans, and land.
NASA satellites document how our world—forests, oceans, human landscapes, even the Sun—changes over months, seasons, and years.
Published Apr 29, 2009
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
Summer is beach season in the northern hemisphere. But even if you're a regular at your local swimming hole, you probably haven't seen too many beaches from this perspective. See the satellite and space-station views of various shorelines from across the United States. No sunblock necessary.
Published Jul 22, 2021
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.
Clouds can be a nuisance when scientists are trying to observe features on Earth's surface. But at other times, clouds are exactly what they want to see. These images highlight some of the more unusual and beautiful clouds observed in recent years from space.
Published Jun 21, 2021
Since 1999, Earth Observatory has published images and stories from all over our planet. Now you can explore more than 11,000 images in a different way: by location.
Published Jun 2, 2021
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.
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.
NASA has a unique vantage point for observing the beauty and wonder of Earth and for making sense of it. The images in this book tell a story of a 4.5-billion-year-old planet where there is always something new to see.
Published Apr 28, 2021
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
