On a typical day in August, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites detect approximately 10,000 active fires, as well as huge swaths of freshly charred land in ecosystems ranging from boreal forests to savanna to tropical forests.
Prodigious phytoplankton growth can be toxic to an ecosystem, suffocating marine life (by depleting the oxygen in the sea) or producing toxins that can sicken and sometimes kill the creatures (including humans) who ingest them.
Space enthusiasts can contribute to NASA’s exploration goals through the next round of the agency’s CubeSat Launch Initiative.
On Aug. 5, 2015, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced it has successfully conducted 100 high-speed laser links between its Sentinel-1A radar Earth-observation satellite in low-Earth orbit and the AlphaSat satellite in geostationary orbit.
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, currently on a year-long mission on the International Space Station, took this photograph of a sunrise and posted it to social media on Aug. 10, 2015.
On Aug. 4, 2015, the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) instrument on the MSG-4 satellite captured its first image of Earth.
Scientists at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory GIS and Technology Group used remote-sensing data to map suitable areas for concentrated solar power (CSP) plants.
To familiarize GIS professionals and students with the advanced Earth-imaging technologies available today, Esri published Essential Earth Imaging for GIS, which provides a basic education in remote-sensing technology, promoting the effective use of sophisticated multispectral and 3D imagery.
Scientists are swapping topographic maps for satellite images as part of a new NASA mission to create the first global inventory of Earth's surface waters.
Located near the western edge of the Sahara Desert, the Eye of the Sahara is a feature that resembles a large eye when viewed from space. Also known as the Richat Structure or Guelb er Richat, the Eye is a symmetrical dome of eroded sedimentary and volcanic rock.
