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Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description According to the U.S. Geological Survey, [ http://water.usgs.gov/cgi-bin/wwdp?region_cd=ks ] the Marais des Cygnes River was 10 feet above flood stage in Ottawa, Kansas, on July 4, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image. The river is not normally visible in MODIS images. In the lower image, taken on June 8, 2007, by Terra MODIS, the river's course is defined only by the tan, plant-free land that surrounds it. But on July 4, the dark blue water of the swollen river is clearly visible. The floods along the Marais des Cygnes forced 2,000 people from their homes in Osawatomie, Kansas, reported the Kansas City Star, but by July 4, water levels on the river had started to drop. Additional flooding along the Neosho and Verdigris Rivers can be seen in the large image. These images were made with visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water on the ground. In this type of image, water is black, though sediment may color it dark blue. Clouds are light blue and white, and plant-covered land is bright green. Bare earth is tan-pink. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA7/2007185 ] of Kansas are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System in both false color, as shown here, and photo-like true color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description According to the U.S. Geological Survey, [ http://water.usgs.gov/cgi-bin/wwdp?region_cd=ks ] the Marais des Cygnes River was 10 feet above flood stage in Ottawa, Kansas, on July 4, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image. The river is not normally visible in MODIS images. In the lower image, taken on June 8, 2007, by Terra MODIS, the river's course is defined only by the tan, plant-free land that surrounds it. But on July 4, the dark blue water of the swollen river is clearly visible. The floods along the Marais des Cygnes forced 2,000 people from their homes in Osawatomie, Kansas, reported the Kansas City Star, but by July 4, water levels on the river had started to drop. Additional flooding along the Neosho and Verdigris Rivers can be seen in the large image. These images were made with visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water on the ground. In this type of image, water is black, though sediment may color it dark blue. Clouds are light blue and white, and plant-covered land is bright green. Bare earth is tan-pink. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA7/2007185 ] of Kansas are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System in both false color, as shown here, and photo-like true color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description The skies over southeastern Kansas were filled with a mix of cloud and haze on July 2, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image. But beneath the clouds, the flood-swollen Neosho and Verdigris Rivers and tributaries can be seen. Normally these river rivers would be too small to be visible in MODIS images (as shown by the lower image from June 8, 2007), but on July 2, the rivers paint a wide blue ribbon across the Kansas plains. Water is normally black in this type of false-color image, which is made with visible and infrared light. On July 2, the rivers are blue partly because sediment colors the water and partly because sunlight is reflecting off the surface of the water. Clouds are light turquoise and white, plant-covered land is green, and bare earth (largely freshly planted, rectangular farm fields) is tan. Additional flooding in western Missouri is visible in the large images. By July 2, the floods had forced thousands from their homes throughout Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas, reported CNN. The flood-swollen Verdigris River, image center, surrounded an oil refinery in Coffeyville, Kansas, where more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the river, said CNN. The polluted portion of the river is under clouds in this image. The storms and the flooding in Kansas led President Bush to declare a major disaster in the state, CNN added. The Neosho River, along the right side of the image, crested at 35 feet, 10 feet above flood stage, at its highest point on July 2, and the Verdigris reached its highest point, 49 feet, 19 feet above flood stage, in Independence, Kansas, said the National Weather Service. [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/hic/dirlistings/data/ICT/021424_ICT_Hydrologic_Summary ]Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA7/2007183 ] of Kansas are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description The skies over southeastern Kansas were filled with a mix of cloud and haze on July 2, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image. But beneath the clouds, the flood-swollen Neosho and Verdigris Rivers and tributaries can be seen. Normally these river rivers would be too small to be visible in MODIS images (as shown by the lower image from June 8, 2007), but on July 2, the rivers paint a wide blue ribbon across the Kansas plains. Water is normally black in this type of false-color image, which is made with visible and infrared light. On July 2, the rivers are blue partly because sediment colors the water and partly because sunlight is reflecting off the surface of the water. Clouds are light turquoise and white, plant-covered land is green, and bare earth (largely freshly planted, rectangular farm fields) is tan. Additional flooding in western Missouri is visible in the large images. By July 2, the floods had forced thousands from their homes throughout Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas, reported CNN. The flood-swollen Verdigris River, image center, surrounded an oil refinery in Coffeyville, Kansas, where more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the river, said CNN. The polluted portion of the river is under clouds in this image. The storms and the flooding in Kansas led President Bush to declare a major disaster in the state, CNN added. The Neosho River, along the right side of the image, crested at 35 feet, 10 feet above flood stage, at its highest point on July 2, and the Verdigris reached its highest point, 49 feet, 19 feet above flood stage, in Independence, Kansas, said the National Weather Service. [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/hic/dirlistings/data/ICT/021424_ICT_Hydrologic_Summary ]Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA7/2007183 ] of Kansas are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description Floods that started with heavy rain on June 26, 2007, still surrounded parts of Coffeyville, Kansas, on July 9, when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]) flying on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image. Coffeyville was flooded on July 1, when the swollen Verdigris River burst through a levee. Water swamped neighborhoods and businesses, including the Coffeyville Resources Refinery. Though the refinery had been shut down in anticipation of the flooding, it leaked more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil into the Verdigris River, reported the Environment News Service. [ http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2007/2007-07-03-01.asp ] The Environmental Protection Agency [ http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/coffeyville/index.html ] was coordinating with Coffeyville Resources to clean up the spill and to ensure that oil did not contaminate drinking water downstream. In these false-color images, the city of Coffeeville is silver and white. Vegetation is red, bare earth is pale gray, and water is dark blue. The Coffeyville Resources Refinery is the concentrated mass of silver, accented with large, white circular storage tanks, northeast of the city. In the top image, the refinery is surrounded by a pool of blue flood water. The lower image, taken on May 19, 2007, shows the area in normal conditions. Downstream from the refinery (to the south) is a grid of streets surrounded by plant-covered land. A few clusters of buildings line the larger streets, but few other large buildings are evident in the area, indicating that this is probably a residential neighborhood. Residual oil-tainted water creates traces of dark blue in the eastern half of the neighborhood. Smudges of blue west of the refinery indicate that the river flooded this part of the city as well. Beyond these areas, the flooded river seemed to remain confined behind levees on its flood plain. The high levees resemble dark red walls hemming in defined geometric shapes, which are filled with water in the top image, but are mud-gray in the lower image. Additional flooding along the Verdigris River is shown in the large image. A broader view [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14353 ] of floods in southeastern Kansas is available in the Natural Hazards section of the Earth Observatory. You can download a 15-meter-resolution KMZ file of Coffeyville [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/Images/kansas_ast_2007187.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
Title Floods in Kansas and Missouri
Description Floods that started with heavy rain on June 26, 2007, still surrounded parts of Coffeyville, Kansas, on July 9, when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]) flying on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image. Coffeyville was flooded on July 1, when the swollen Verdigris River burst through a levee. Water swamped neighborhoods and businesses, including the Coffeyville Resources Refinery. Though the refinery had been shut down in anticipation of the flooding, it leaked more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil into the Verdigris River, reported the Environment News Service. [ http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2007/2007-07-03-01.asp ] The Environmental Protection Agency [ http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/coffeyville/index.html ] was coordinating with Coffeyville Resources to clean up the spill and to ensure that oil did not contaminate drinking water downstream. In these false-color images, the city of Coffeeville is silver and white. Vegetation is red, bare earth is pale gray, and water is dark blue. The Coffeyville Resources Refinery is the concentrated mass of silver, accented with large, white circular storage tanks, northeast of the city. In the top image, the refinery is surrounded by a pool of blue flood water. The lower image, taken on May 19, 2007, shows the area in normal conditions. Downstream from the refinery (to the south) is a grid of streets surrounded by plant-covered land. A few clusters of buildings line the larger streets, but few other large buildings are evident in the area, indicating that this is probably a residential neighborhood. Residual oil-tainted water creates traces of dark blue in the eastern half of the neighborhood. Smudges of blue west of the refinery indicate that the river flooded this part of the city as well. Beyond these areas, the flooded river seemed to remain confined behind levees on its flood plain. The high levees resemble dark red walls hemming in defined geometric shapes, which are filled with water in the top image, but are mud-gray in the lower image. Additional flooding along the Verdigris River is shown in the large image. A broader view [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14353 ] of floods in southeastern Kansas is available in the Natural Hazards section of the Earth Observatory. You can download a 15-meter-resolution KMZ file of Coffeyville [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/Images/kansas_ast_2007187.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.
Floods in the Midwestern Uni …
Title Floods in the Midwestern United States
Description The rivers of northwestern Missouri were still swollen in the wake of intense spring storms when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image on May 10, 2007. The image is made from a combination of infrared and visible light to make the floods more visible than they would be in a photo-like image. In this type of image, water is dark blue or black, clouds are light blue and white, plant-covered land is bright green, and bare earth is pink-tinted tan. Fires are outlined with red boxes. The Missouri River runs along the left edge of the image, then curves east along the bottom of the image. Though the most flooded regions were covered in clouds, a few breaks reveal that the Missouri was swollen far beyond its banks. Nestled in a bend in the river near the Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri border is the town of Big Lake. The image shows that the river's curve has turned into a broad lake. The town was completely submerged in the flood when levees along the river broke, reported the Associated Press. [ http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/05/11/missouri.flooding.ap/index.html ] Beyond Big Lake, many communities along the Grand and the Platte Rivers and their tributaries have also been flooded or threatened by floods. All of these rivers are clearly running high in the image. MODIS captured the lower image on April 29, 2007, not quite a week before the rains began. By providing a clear view of normal water levels, the image illustrates just how extensively the rivers were flooded on May 10. Photo-like versions of both the April 29 [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3/2007119/USA3.2007119.aqua ] and May 10 [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3/2007130/USA3.2007130.terra ] images are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in the Midwestern Uni …
Title Floods in the Midwestern United States
Description The rivers of northwestern Missouri were still swollen in the wake of intense spring storms when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image on May 10, 2007. The image is made from a combination of infrared and visible light to make the floods more visible than they would be in a photo-like image. In this type of image, water is dark blue or black, clouds are light blue and white, plant-covered land is bright green, and bare earth is pink-tinted tan. Fires are outlined with red boxes. The Missouri River runs along the left edge of the image, then curves east along the bottom of the image. Though the most flooded regions were covered in clouds, a few breaks reveal that the Missouri was swollen far beyond its banks. Nestled in a bend in the river near the Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri border is the town of Big Lake. The image shows that the river's curve has turned into a broad lake. The town was completely submerged in the flood when levees along the river broke, reported the Associated Press. [ http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/05/11/missouri.flooding.ap/index.html ] Beyond Big Lake, many communities along the Grand and the Platte Rivers and their tributaries have also been flooded or threatened by floods. All of these rivers are clearly running high in the image. MODIS captured the lower image on April 29, 2007, not quite a week before the rains began. By providing a clear view of normal water levels, the image illustrates just how extensively the rivers were flooded on May 10. Photo-like versions of both the April 29 [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3/2007119/USA3.2007119.aqua ] and May 10 [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3/2007130/USA3.2007130.terra ] images are available from the MODIS Rapid Response System. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Colorado Snow
Title Colorado Snow
Description By January 7, 2007, Colorado had endured three major snowstorms in as many weeks. The first [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14054 ] storm arrived on December 20. The second arrived on December 28, and the third struck on January 5. According to Denver's Channel 4 news station snow totals for the second storm [ http://cbs4denver.com/weatherblog/local_blogentry_363165702.html ] ranged from 15 to 70 centimeters (6 to 27.5 inches), and for the third storm [ http://cbs4denver.com/weatherblog/local_blogentry_005213333.html ] ranged from 9 to 37 centimeters (3.5 to 14.6 inches). The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on January 7, 2007. In this relatively cloud-free image, nearly the entire state of Colorado is buried under a blanket of snow. Only a small patch in the southwest corner of the state remains relatively dry. Snow cover extends well into Kansas and Nebraska—not surprising as the weekly snowstorms moved off in that direction. The metropolitan Denver area appears as a pale gray patch where buildings and paved surfaces interrupt the snow cover. Likewise, the mountains to the west of Denver carve meandering lines in the snow cover. The western portion of the state generally saw less snowfall than the eastern plains. As of January 8, 2007, a fourth weekly storm was predicted to hit the area a few days later. Added to the snow were high winds, with gusts up to 185 kilometers (115 miles) per hour creating snowdrifts up to 1.2 meters (4 feet) high on the roads between Denver and Boulder, home to the University of Colorado. The drifts trapped some drivers for hours. According to the Rocky Mountain News, another unlucky group of drivers were buried in their cars when an avalanche covered part of U.S. Highway 40 in the Colorado mountains on January 6, 2006. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. The Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_BSRN_BAO_Boulder ] of this region.
Heatwave in the Western Unit …
Title Heatwave in the Western United States
Description The oppressive heat that crept over parts of the western United States during the first few days of July 2007 [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14380 ] took hold of the entire West during the week of July 4 through July 11. Deep red tones blanket every western state in this land surface temperature image, an indication that temperatures were warmer than in previous years. The image was made with data collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite and shows temperatures recorded between July 4 and July 11, 2007, compared to the average of temperatures observed during the same period in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Areas that are warmer than during that three-year period are red, while cooler areas are blue. Triple-digit temperatures broke or matched records from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Great Falls, Montana, during this period. In this image, a cluster of red-black over eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and eastern Montana indicates that these regions experienced much warmer temperatures than in previous years. Western South Dakota (the Black Hills region) was also exceptionally warm. On the other end of the scale, Texas was much cooler than it had been in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Heavy rains pounded Texas on and off throughout this period, contributing to wide-spread flooding. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14363 ] You can download a global KMZ file of Land Surface Temperature anomaly [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/Images/kansas_ast_2007187.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Land Processes [ http://modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team.
Heatwave in the Western Unit …
Title Heatwave in the Western United States
Description Extreme heat lingered over much of the western United States in early July 2007. Temperatures soared to triple digits, meeting or breaking records from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Great Falls, Montana, said news reports. The oppressive heat contributed to creating prime fire conditions, so that, when dry thunderstorms (lightning storms accompanied by little or no rain) rolled through on July 7, lightning sparked dozens of fast-moving wildfires. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14358 ] This image, created from data collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite from June 26 though July 3, 2007, shows land surface temperatures compared to average temperatures observed during the same period in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Deep red across the Southwest and the Intermountain West indicate that temperatures were much higher than they were in 2000-2002. The Southeast also experienced warmer temperatures. Northern California, Oregon, and Washington appear to be cooler than in previous years, as indicated by the blue tones. The heat wave started mid-way through the week-long period shown in this image. While temperatures may have soared at the end of the period, cooler temperatures earlier in the week dominate the signal. Land surface temperatures from July 4-11 [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14393 ] show that these areas warmed significantly the following week. The Southern Plains are dark blue where temperatures were much cooler than they had been in previous years. During this period, torrential rains drenched the region, causing wide-spread flooding in Texas and Oklahoma [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14363 ] and in Kansas and Missouri. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14383 ] The gray region over Kansas and Oklahoma is an area in which MODIS could not record the land's temperature because of perpetual cloud cover during the week-long period. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Land Processes [ http://modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team.
Dust Storm over Colorado and …
Title Dust Storm over Colorado and Kansas
Description Winds in excess of 30 miles per hour blew across most of the midwestern United States on April 18, 2004. This true-color scene shows a large dust storm blowing from eastern Colorado into western Kansas, as a result of the strong winds, measured at near hurricane force in this region. According to news reports, the storm reduced visibility at the surface to less than a mile and contributed to a number of car accidents in the region, including a 17-car pileup near Burlington, CO. This image was acquired on April 18 by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite. Image courtesy Liam Gumley, Space Science and Engineering Center, [ http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/ ] University of Wisconsin-Madison
Dust Storm over Colorado and …
Title Dust Storm over Colorado and Kansas
Description Winds in excess of 30 miles per hour blew across most of the midwestern United States on April 18, 2004. This true-color scene shows a large dust storm blowing from eastern Colorado into western Kansas, as a result of the strong winds, measured at near hurricane force in this region. According to news reports, the storm reduced visibility at the surface to less than a mile and contributed to a number of car accidents in the region, including a 17-car pileup near Burlington, CO. This image was acquired on April 18 by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite. Image courtesy Liam Gumley, Space Science and Engineering Center, [ http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/ ] University of Wisconsin-Madison
Snow Across the Western Unit …
Title Snow Across the Western United States
Description The Sunday after Thanksgiving is traditionally one of the busiest travel days of the year in the United States as people return home from the four-day weekend. Sunday, November 28, 2004, was no exception, but this year, Mother Nature snarled traffic across a large swath of the west with an intense snow storm. The storm dumped up to 24 inches (0.6 meters) of snow on the mountains of southern Utah, and blanketed the surrounding states. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image the following day, on November 29, after the clouds moved out. The storm's path is clearly visible in this image: a track of white extends from southeastern Oregon and the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California to Colorado and New Mexico in the east. The National Weather Service reports that the storm moved east across the Plains States of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, and Iowa on November 29 and November 30. The snow highlights some interesting features of the Western United States that might not otherwise be obvious in satellite imagery. Sandwiched between the straight diagonal line of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the west (the straight edge of the snow) and the Rocky Mountains in Central Utah in the east is the Great Basin Desert. This high desert basin covers a heart-shaped region of southern Oregon, Nevada, Utah, and southern Idaho and is clearly outlined in snow. Hemmed between two large mountain ranges that trap moisture from the east and the west, it is the United States' largest desert. It receives on average 7-12 inches of precipitation every year. The water that does fall in the region drains to interior, closed basins instead of the ocean, giving the region its name. The Great Basin Desert is made up of a series of mostly north-south running mountain ranges and valleys that give the land a wrinkled, wash-board appearance, particularly in Nevada. The snow highlights elevation change elsewhere in the image. The imposing Rocky Mountains appear slightly darker than the valleys around them, and the peaks and high plateaus in the south are covered in snow while the pink desert lowlands remain bare. On the right edge of the image, the flat plains of eastern Wyoming and Colorado are an even, uninterrupted white. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Land Processes DAAC
Snow Storm in Colorado
Title Snow Storm in Colorado
Description A big snowstorm brought much-needed moisture to the state of Colorado on January 19, 2006. As reported by the Rocky Mountain News, before the storm, the state's assistant climatologist had warned that drought was beginning to affect the foothills west of the Denver metro area and the plains to the east of the city. A week later, relief arrived, although opinions varied as to whether it was enough to stop the developing drought conditions. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] flying onboard the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite took this picture of Colorado and surrounding states on January 20, 2006. In this image, snow blankets the Rocky Mountains and extends to the east in a counterclockwise direction towards Kansas and Nebraska. The same storm system that brought moisture to Colorado continued dropping precipitation through the Midwest. For Colorado residents, the snow was a mixed blessing. On January 19, temperatures remained warm enough to melt much of the snow as soon as it hit the ground. Overnight temperatures, however, plummeted. The day this image was taken, commuters throughout the state were contending with roads like ice rinks. According to the Colorado Springs Gazette, authorities urged commuters to drive slowly to avoid crashes. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Earth Sciences DAAC.
Snowstorm in New Mexico
Title Snowstorm in New Mexico
Description Heavy snow left New Mexico in a state of emergency on February 25, 2004, after a large storm swept across the region the previous day. Roads, schools, businesses, and even the state government were all forced to close in the height of the storm. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) on the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite tracked a blue trail of snow across northern Texas, New Mexico, and Southern Colorado on February 25. Blue patches of snow also appear in southern Utah, upper left corner. In this false-color image, the snow is blue, bare ground is pink, vegetation is bright green, and clouds are white and light blue. The states shown in this image include, starting in the upper left corner and going clockwise, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Northern Mexico forms the bottom left corner of the image. The high-resolution image provided above has a resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the EOS Data Pool at NASA GSFC
Snowstorms in Colorado
Title Snowstorms in Colorado
Description By January 7, 2007, Colorado had endured three major snowstorms in as many weeks. The first [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14054 ] storm arrived on December 20. The second arrived on December 28, and the third struck on January 5. According to Denver's Channel 4 news station snow totals for the second storm [ http://cbs4denver.com/weatherblog/local_blogentry_363165702.html ] ranged from 15 to 70 centimeters (6 to 27.5 inches), and for the third storm [ http://cbs4denver.com/weatherblog/local_blogentry_005213333.html ] ranged from 9 to 37 centimeters (3.5 to 14.6 inches). The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on January 7, 2007. In this relatively cloud-free image, nearly the entire state of Colorado is buried under a blanket of snow. Only a small patch in the southwest corner of the state remains relatively dry. Snow cover extends well into Kansas and Nebraska—not surprising as the weekly snowstorms moved off in that direction. The metropolitan Denver area appears as a pale gray patch where buildings and paved surfaces interrupt the snow cover. Likewise, the mountains to the west of Denver carve meandering lines in the snow cover. The western portion of the state generally saw less snowfall than the eastern plains. As of January 8, 2007, a fourth weekly storm was predicted to hit the area a few days later. Added to the snow were high winds, with gusts up to 185 kilometers (115 miles) per hour creating snowdrifts up to 1.2 meters (4 feet) high on the roads between Denver and Boulder, home to the University of Colorado. The drifts trapped some drivers for hours. According to the Rocky Mountain News, another unlucky group of drivers were buried in their cars when an avalanche covered part of U.S. Highway 40 in the Colorado mountains on January 6, 2006. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. The Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_BSRN_BAO_Boulder ] of this region.
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an …
Title Stressed Crops in Ukraine and Russia
Description Flat, fertile plains stretch northward from the Black Sea in Ukraine and southern Russia. With a climate similar to that of Kansas, roughly two-thirds of the Ukraine is agricultural land. The main crops in the region are wheat, barley, and corn. Most wheat (about 95 percent) is planted in the late fall and harvested in July and August of the following year. Across the border in southern Russia, winter wheat is similarly important. As the wheat grows, farmers rely on rain to nourish the developing plants. In 2005, however, farmers faced a problem. As of September 29, little or no rain had fallen over the region since mid-August. Without rain, farmers could not plant on time. Those who did plant faced the prospect of a poor crop unless rain began to fall. The effects of dry conditions on plants across Ukraine and southern Russia are shown in this vegetation image, made from data acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) between October 2 and October 10, 2005. Dry areas are shown in brown, while normal conditions are tan, and better-than-normal conditions are green. The drought seems to be particularly bad on Crimea, the island-like peninsula in the Black Sea, and in Russia to its east, where deep red points to very stressed vegetation. The vegetation index is a measure of the amount of light absorbed by plants over a large area during photosynthesis. When crops are healthy, they produce more leaves and, as a result, absorb more light in photosynthesis. When they are stressed by drought, crops produce fewer leaves and absorb less light. In this image, the vegetation index was compared to the average of measurements made during the same period in 2001-2004. The resulting image shows that plants are significantly more stressed in 2005 than they were during this period in the previous four years. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef and information provided by Assaf Anyamba as part of the Global Agricultural Monitoring Project between NASA, USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), and the University of Maryland. More data and information about this joint project is available at Satellite Information for Agricultural Monitoring. [ http://tripwire.geog.umd.edu/usda/ ]
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an …
Title Stressed Crops in Ukraine and Russia
Description Flat, fertile plains stretch northward from the Black Sea in Ukraine and southern Russia. With a climate similar to that of Kansas, roughly two-thirds of the Ukraine is agricultural land. The main crops in the region are wheat, barley, and corn. Most wheat (about 95 percent) is planted in the late fall and harvested in July and August of the following year. Across the border in southern Russia, winter wheat is similarly important. As the wheat grows, farmers rely on rain to nourish the developing plants. In 2005, however, farmers faced a problem. As of September 29, little or no rain had fallen over the region since mid-August. Without rain, farmers could not plant on time. Those who did plant faced the prospect of a poor crop unless rain began to fall. The effects of dry conditions on plants across Ukraine and southern Russia are shown in this vegetation image, made from data acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) between October 2 and October 10, 2005. Dry areas are shown in brown, while normal conditions are tan, and better-than-normal conditions are green. The drought seems to be particularly bad on Crimea, the island-like peninsula in the Black Sea, and in Russia to its east, where deep red points to very stressed vegetation. The vegetation index is a measure of the amount of light absorbed by plants over a large area during photosynthesis. When crops are healthy, they produce more leaves and, as a result, absorb more light in photosynthesis. When they are stressed by drought, crops produce fewer leaves and absorb less light. In this image, the vegetation index was compared to the average of measurements made during the same period in 2001-2004. The resulting image shows that plants are significantly more stressed in 2005 than they were during this period in the previous four years. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef and information provided by Assaf Anyamba as part of the Global Agricultural Monitoring Project between NASA, USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), and the University of Maryland. More data and information about this joint project is available at Satellite Information for Agricultural Monitoring. [ http://tripwire.geog.umd.edu/usda/ ]
Fires in the Great Plains
Title Fires in the Great Plains
Description In the plains south of Topeka, Kansas, on April 9, 2006, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite detected numerous fires burning. The larger image shows fires to the south in Oklahoma, as well. Marked in red in this photo-like satellite image, many of the fires are associated with dark-colored burn scars. MODIS cannot tell the cause of the fires it detects, but this area supports numerous ranches and farms and it is possible that the fires are for brush or pasture clearing. Many parts of the Great Plains and the Southern Plains have experienced significant early-season fire activity this year, however, so some of the fires may be natural or accidental wildfires. The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center
Fires in the Great Plains
Title Fires in the Great Plains
Description In Kansas, dozens of active fires were burning when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite passed overhead on April 12, 2006. The fires are marked in red in the scene. The tan-and green-speckled landscape is darkened by burn scars as well. Many of these fires may be intentional fires set by people to clear ranch or farmland of brush for grazing, planting, or to reduce fire danger later in the season. The high-resolution image provided above has a spatial resolution of 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides images of this part of the United States at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_CART_SITE/2006102/AERONET_CART_SITE.2006102.terra ] NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center
Floods in the Midwestern Uni …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima …
Missouri_TMO_2007130
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-05-10
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier Missouri_TMO_2007130
Fires in the Great Plains: N …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In Kansas, dozens of active …
USA.TMO2006102
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006-04-12
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier USA.TMO2006102
Colorado Snow: Image of the …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
By January 7, 2007, Colorado …
colosnow_tmo_2007007
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-01-07
creator NASA -- NASA image courtesy the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. The Rapid Response Team provides rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?AERONET_BSRN_BAO_Boulder daily images of this region.
identifier colosnow_tmo_2007007
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima …
Kansas_AMO_2007185
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-07-04
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier Kansas_AMO_2007185
Snow and Ice Storm in the Mi …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
An unusually wide swath of s …
modis_icestorm_midwest
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2002-02-01
creator NASA -- MODIS image courtesy University of Wisconsin www.ssec.wisc.edu/ Space Science and Engineering Center, and the modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Science Team SeaWiFS image courtesy the seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE
identifier modis_icestorm_midwest
Floods in Kansas and Missour …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima …
Kansas_TMO_2007183
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-07-02
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier Kansas_TMO_2007183
April Showers Bring May Flow …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Vigorous vegetation growth i …
PIA04358
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2004-05-03
creator NASA -- Image courtesy NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, www-misr.jpl.nasa.gov/ MISR Team. Text by Clare Averill (Raytheon ITSS/Jet Propulsion Laboratory).
identifier PIA04358
Flooding in Coffeyville, Kan …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Floods that started with hea …
kansas_ast_2007187
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-07-09
creator NASA -- NASA image by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.
identifier kansas_ast_2007187
Monarch Butterflies' Mexican …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Each fall, the monarch butte …
monarch.TMO2005309
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2005
creator NASA -- NASA image courtesy the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center
identifier monarch.TMO2005309
Fires in the Great Plains: N …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
In the plains south of Topek …
Kansas.TMO2006099
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006-04-09
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier Kansas.TMO2006099
Major Snowstorm in the U.S. …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
The Sunday after Thanksgivin …
terra_uswest_29nov04
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2004-11-29
creator NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Land Processes DAAC.
identifier terra_uswest_29nov04
Snowstorms in Colorado: Natu …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima …
colorado_tmo_2006359
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006-12-25
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier colorado_tmo_2006359
Dust Storm over Colorado and …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Winds in excess of 30 miles …
KansasDust_TMO200404109
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2004-04-18
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier KansasDust_TMO200404109
Dust Storm over Colorado and …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Winds in excess of 30 miles …
KansasDust_TMO200404109
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2004-04-18
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier KansasDust_TMO200404109
Snowstorm in New Mexico: Nat …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Heavy snow left New Mexico i …
terra_newmexico_25feb04
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2004-02-25
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier terra_newmexico_25feb04
Heat Wave in the Western Uni …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Extreme heat lingered over m …
usalsta_tmo_2007177
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2007-07-11
creator NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained courtesy of the modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Land Processes team.
identifier usalsta_tmo_2007177
Snow Storm in Colorado: Natu …
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
A big snowstorm brought much …
colorado_tmo_2006020
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006-01-20
creator NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day
identifier colorado_tmo_2006020
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
Agricultural Patterns: Image …
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle …
Around the world, agricultur …
ge_06605_06
mediatype IMAGE
mediatype image
date 2006
creator NASA -- NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team
identifier ge_06605_06
April Showers Bring May Flow …
PIA04358
Sol (our sun)
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroR …
Title April Showers Bring May Flowers to the Southern United States
Original Caption Released with Image Vigorous vegetation growth in the Southern United States after heavy rains fell during April and early May, 2004, is quantified in these images and data products from the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR). The images were acquired on April 1 (top set) and May 3 (bottom set), and extend through Kansas and Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas, and eastern Texas, with the Texas-Louisiana border at the bottom right-hand corner. The left-hand images are natural-color views from MISR's nadir camera. In the month between the April and May images, the overall greenness is enhanced, and the Boston and Ouachita Mountains are transformed from brownish hues to vivid green. The city of Dallas, Texas, appears as the pale gray area at lower left and the Red River (which corresponds with the Texas-Oklahoma border) is apparent as the yellowish feature flowing toward the lower left-hand edge. Scattered clouds appear in the upper right-hand corners of both images. Quantitative values for the vegetation changes are provided by the center and right-hand images. The middle panels show Leaf Area Index (LAI), or the area of leaves per unit area of ground below them, as measured from above. The right-hand panels show FPAR, which is the fraction of the photosynthetically active region (PAR) of visible light (400 - 700 nm) absorbed by green vegetation. LAI and FPAR are two important quantities for monitoring the photosynthetic activity and carbon uptake efficiency of live vegetation. MISR's LAI and FPAR products make use of aerosol retrievals to correct for atmospheric scattering and absorption effects, and use plant canopy structural models to determine the partitioning of solar radiation. Both of these aspects are facilitated by the multiangular nature of the MISR measurements. The Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer observes the daylit Earth continuously and every 9 days views the entire globe between 82 degrees north and 82 degrees south latitude. These data products were generated from a portion of the imagery acquired during Terra orbits 22810 and 23276. The panels cover an area of about 380 kilometers x 704 kilometers, and utilize data from blocks 61 to 65 within World Reference System-2 path 26. MISR was built and is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, for NASA's Office of Earth Science, Washington, DC. The Terra satellite is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.
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