|
|
Black Sea Becomes Turquoise
| Title |
Black Sea Becomes Turquoise |
| Description |
This true-color image shows bright, turquoise-colored swirls across the surface of the Black Sea, signifying the presence of a large phytoplankton bloom. Scientists have observed similar blooms recurring annually, roughly this same time of year. The Sea of Azov, which is the smaller body of water located just north of the Black Sea in this image, also shows a high level of color variance. The brownish pixels in the Azov are probably due to sediments carried in from high waters and snowmelt from upstream. This scene was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ], flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, on May 14, 2002. According to the Black Sea Environment Programme?s Marine Hydrophysical Institute [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://www.grid.unep.ch/bsein/index.html ], the Black Sea is ?one of the marine areas of the world most damaged by human activities.? The coastal zone around these Eastern European inland water bodies is densely populated?supporting a permanent population of roughly 16 million people and another 4 million tourists each year. Six countries border with the Black Sea, including Ukraine to the north, Russia and Georgia to the east, Turkey to the south, and Bulgaria and Romania to the west. Because it is isolated from the world?s oceans, and because there is an extensive drainage network of rivers that empty into it, the Black Sea has a unique and delicate water balance which is very important for supporting its marine ecosystem. Of particular concern to scientists is the salinity, water level, and nutrient levels of the Black Sea?s waters, all of which are, unfortunately, being impacted by human activities. Within the last three decades the combination of increased nutrient loads from human sources together with pollution and over-harvesting of fisheries has resulted in a sharp decline in water quality. Scientists from each of the Black Sea?s bordering nations are currently working together to study the issues and formulate a joint, international strategy for saving this unique marine ecosystem. Working with a spirit of placing more emphasis on joint ownership of the Black Sea?s resources, and less emphasis on blame, it is hoped that the cooperating countries can strike an effective balance between both enjoying and preserving the Black Sea. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC |
|
Drought in Moldova
| Title |
Drought in Moldova |
| Description |
"Moldova's 2007 drought has been the most severe in living memory,' said the United Nations World Food Program in a special report [ http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/YSAR-77DR9F?OpenDocument&rc=4&cc=mda ] issued on September 25, 2007. The 2007 drought was the worst in a series of nine dry periods to settle over the country since 1990, and the World Food Program compared its severity to the drought of 1946 during which many Moldovans starved. The impact of the drought on plants in Moldova and parts of Ukraine and Romania is illustrated by this pair of images. The images are vegetation anomaly images, which indicate how quickly plants were taking in light and growing. Areas that are green are regions where plants were larger and leafier (leading to more photosynthesis) than they were on average from 2000 through 2006. Brown areas show where plants were smaller or less leafy than average, in this case as a result of drought. Gray areas indicate where clouds blocked the ground from view throughout the observation period, and blue is water. The images were 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. The top image is a compilation of daily data collected between July 28 and August 12, 2007, when the impact of the drought was at its greatest. Summer crops, such as corn and sunflowers, were in a critical stage of development, during which water was essential. The deep brown tone that covers all of Moldova reveals that the hot, dry weather devastated plants. Conditions observed in this image match reports from the ground. Cereal grain production was down 70 percent compared to average yields over the past five years, and other crops, like corn, sunflowers, grapes, and pasture for livestock also suffered, said the World Food Program. Food production from home gardens, the mainstay food supply of about 70 percent of Moldova's population, dropped, and food prices went up. The lower image, from August 29 through September 13, reveals just how much conditions can change in a single month. Some of what had been brown is brushed with green where plants responded to rainfall. Helpful though the rain evidently was to those plants that were still growing, it arrived too late to improve crop conditions, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, Global Agricultural Monitoring Project [ http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm ]. Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
|
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/ ] |
|
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an
…
| Title |
Stressed Crops in Ukraine and Russia |
| Description |
Under the one-two punch of a dry fall and a frigid winter, winter crops in Ukraine were in poor condition in April and May 2006. This vegetation anomaly (difference from normal) image was 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. Widespread brown indicates that plants throughout the region had grown less compared to the average growth for 2000-2005. The Foreign Agricultural Service, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, estimated that only 10 metric tons of winter wheat, the primary crop growing here, would be harvested in July and August. That figure was down about 46 percent from the 18.7 metric tons harvested in 2005. Why were winter crops in such rough shape? The biggest reason is drought. From August to October or November, depending on the location, little rain fell over the Ukrainian fields where winter grains were being planted, said the Foreign Agricultural Service. In Ukraine, roughly 42 million hectares of the total 60 million hectares is devoted to agriculture, and winter wheat and barley are among the most important crops. Planted in the fall, winter grains typically develop strong roots before going into dormancy with the onset of winter. During the winter, the crop is protected from the killing cold by an insulating layer of snow, and when the snow melts, the grain continues to grow until it is harvested in July and August. In 2005, the drought delayed planting, so the plants did not have time to develop strong root systems. And then the cold hit. An unusual deep freeze [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17173 ] gripped Eastern Europe in mid-January. Though little of the wheat crop was damaged, winter barely and rape seed were. The widespread impact of drought and cold is clear from the negative vegetation anomaly shown above. All crop information cited in this caption is from the Foreign Agricultural Service. Links to the most recent crop report and general information about Ukrainian agriculture are provided below. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef as part of the Global Agricultural Monitoring Project [ http://www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm ] between NASA, USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), and the University of Maryland. |
|
Floods in Eastern Europe: Na
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
EasternEurope_TMO_2008211
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-07-29 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
EasternEurope_TMO_2008211 |
|
Lower Danube Green Corridor
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
* Danube River Delta (Terra
…
modis_aster_danube
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2000-08-10 |
| creator |
NASA -- ASTER data made available by NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ASTER Science Team MODIS image courtesy of Jacques Decloitres, rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center |
| identifier |
modis_aster_danube |
|
Floods in Eastern Europe: Na
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
Romania_TMO_2008211
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-07-29 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Romania_TMO_2008211 |
|
Black Sea Becomes Turquoise:
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
This true-color image shows
…
BlackSea_M2002134
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-05-14 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
BlackSea_M2002134 |
|
Icy Spring Decimates Winter
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
Severe ice crusting during F
…
Ukraine_wheat
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2003-04-17 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC |
| identifier |
Ukraine_wheat |
|
Drought in Moldova: Natural
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
moldovandvia_tmo_2007241
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-13 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
moldovandvia_tmo_2007241 |
|
Drought in Moldova: Image of
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
'Moldova's 2007 drought has
…
ge_08101
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm Global Agricultural Monitoring Project . Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
| identifier |
ge_08101 |
|
Drought in Moldova: Image of
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
'Moldova's 2007 drought has
…
ge_08101
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm Global Agricultural Monitoring Project . Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
| identifier |
ge_08101 |
|
Drought in Moldova: Image of
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
'Moldova's 2007 drought has
…
ge_08101
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm Global Agricultural Monitoring Project . Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
| identifier |
ge_08101 |
|
Drought in Moldova: Image of
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
'Moldova's 2007 drought has
…
ge_08101
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm Global Agricultural Monitoring Project . Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
| identifier |
ge_08101 |
|
Drought in Moldova: Image of
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
'Moldova's 2007 drought has
…
ge_08101
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by Inbal Reshef, www.pecad.fas.usda.gov/glam.cfm Global Agricultural Monitoring Project . Additional caption information courtesy Mark Lindeman, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. |
| identifier |
ge_08101 |
|
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Under the one-two punch of a
…
ge_15726
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-23 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_15726 |
|
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Under the one-two punch of a
…
ge_15726
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-23 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_15726 |
|
Stressed Crops in Ukraine an
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Under the one-two punch of a
…
ge_15726
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-23 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_15726 |
|
|
