Over the years, astronauts aboard the orbiting laboratory have snapped spectacular photographs of Earth’s snow and ice in both hemispheres.
An Arctic cold front swept across the Great Lakes and brought fierce winds and potent lake-effect snow.
Image of the Day Atmosphere Heat Land Severe Storms Snow and Ice
Land and water were decorated with snow and ice when astronauts looked down on the region in February 2022.
Published Dec 30, 2022
Glaciers on these heavenly mountains are a source of freshwater for farmers in Central Asia.
Published Dec 29, 2022
Beneath a layer of snow and ice, exceptionally hot fluids rise from the floor of Yellowstone Lake.
Published Dec 27, 2022
From volcanoes to salt flats, the mountainous region of Chile, Peru, and Bolivia is home to a range of compelling landscapes.
Published Dec 26, 2022
Four of the range’s prominent volcanoes—Rainier, St. Helens, Adams, and Hood—were on full display in February 2022.
Published Dec 25, 2022
Canada’s second-most populous city occupies the largest of hundreds of islands within the Hochelaga Archipelago.
Published Dec 24, 2022
This deep lake on the southern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau freezes over during winter, curbing the large changes in lake level observed during other seasons.
Published Dec 23, 2022
A blast of Arctic air will plunge south and help trigger a powerful blizzard that will churn through the central and eastern U.S.
Published Dec 21, 2022Image of the Day Atmosphere Heat Land Severe Storms Human Presence
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.
The Mid-Atlantic coast occasionally sees snow, but rain has become increasingly common over time.
Published Dec 21, 2022
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
The abundant stone has been a construction resource for many millennia, shaping everything from prehistoric temples to modern-day housing.
Published Dec 20, 2022
Sunglint, waves, and ship wakes are visible on the waters between Italy’s Calabria region and Sicily.
Published Dec 18, 2022
The international Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission will measure the height of freshwater bodies and the ocean on more than 90 percent of Earth’s surface.
Published Dec 17, 2022
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.
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
Your challenge is to tell us the location of the satellite image and why it is interesting.
Published Dec 12, 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 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
For the third time in a decade, the winner hails from the Canary Islands.
Published Mar 1, 2022
As green chlorophyll fades from trees and plants each autumn, other pigments color Earth’s landscapes. Satellites take leaf-peeping to a whole new level.
Published Oct 26, 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
These maps depict how much hotter or cooler an ocean basin was compared to the long-term average. Temperature anomalies can indicate changes in ocean circulation or the arrival of patterns like El Niño and La Niña.
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
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
When fuels such as coal, wood, and oil burn incompletely, they produce carbon monoxide. The gas is spread by winds and circulation. These maps show monthly averages of CO in the lower atmosphere.
Formed in 2009, the Archive Team (not to be confused with the archive.org Archive-It Team) is a rogue archivist collective dedicated to saving copies of rapidly dying or deleted websites for the sake of history and digital heritage. The group is 100% composed of volunteers and interested parties, and has expanded into a large amount of related projects for saving online and digital history.
