Astronauts often observe atmospheric and surface phenomena in ways that are impossible to view from the ground, as illustrated in this photograph of Lake Superior that exhibits both at once.
Algae Blankets Yellow Sea and Beaches
In June and early July 2013, beaches and bays along the east coast of China's Shandong Province were coated in thick mats of green algae, or seaweed, that washed in from the Yellow Sea.
Zooming in on Quebec's Sediment, Smoke and Stained Ice
Spring and early summer can be dynamic times in Canada, with ice retreating, soil thawing, wildfires and agricultural fires sparking, and rivers swelling.
Satellite Shows Aftermath of Historic Colorado Fire
NASA's Terra satellite captured this image of the burn scar from Colorado's Black Forest fire, which charred more than 14,000 acres (5,700 hectares) and destroyed 509 homes, killing two people.
Astronauts View Raging Wildfires
Colorado's West Fork Complex fire was so hot that it spawned pyrocumulus clouds”tall, cauliflower-shaped clouds that swell high above Earth's surface. Here's how it looked from the International Space Station.
Black Forest Fire Colorado's Most Destructive
Colorado wasn't forecast to have an unusually high wildfire risk this year, but when temperatures soared above 100°F in Denver on June 11”the earliest ever for triple digits”all bets were off. On the same day, the Black Forest fire erupted. A week later, more than 500 homes were destroyed and two lives lost northeast of Colorado Springs.
Satellite Observes Giant Oklahoma Tornado Scar
On June 2, 2013, NASA's Terra satellite observed an immense scar on the Oklahoma landscape left by a May 20, 2013, EF-5 tornado”the most severe rating on the enhanced Fujita scale. It was the deadliest U.S. tornado since an EF-5 killed 158 people in Joplin, Mo., in 2011.
Sizing Up a Volcano
When studying volcanoes, detecting even slight movements of the land surface can tell a lot about what's happening below. Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have a new tool to observe such ground deformation.
Astronauts Capture Novel View of Alaska Volcano
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) photographed striking views of Pavlof Volcano on May 18, 2013. The oblique perspective from the ISS reveals the ash plume's 3-D structure, which often is obscured by the traditional nadir views of most remote sensing satellites.
The Views from LDCM”Better Than Our Own Eyes!
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to soar like a satellite, watching the world pass beneath you? Except for a few astronauts, the dream is elusive”but through imagery from the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM), we can take such a vicarious flight.
