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| Photo Description |
From December 10, 1966, until his retirement on February 27, 1976, Stanley P. Butchart served as Chief (later, Director) of Flight Operations at NASA's Flight Research Center (renamed on March 26, 1976, the Hugh L. Dryden Flight Research Center). Initially, his responsibilities in this position included the Research Pilots Branch, a Maintenance and Manufacturing Branch, and an Operations Engineering Branch, the last of which not only included propulsion and electrical/electronic sections but project engineers for the X-15 and lifting bodies. During his tenure, however, the responsibilities of his directorate came to include not only Flight Test Engineering Support but Flight Systems and Loads laboratories. Before becoming Chief of Flight Operations, Butchart had served since June of 1966 as head of the Research Pilots Branch (Chief Pilot) and then as acting chief of Flight Operations. He had joined the Center (then known as the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics' High-Speed Flight Research Station) as a research pilot on May 10, 1951. During his career as a research pilot, he flew a great variety of research and air-launch aircraft including the D-558-I, D-558-II, B-29 (plus its Navy version, the P2B), X-4, X-5, KC-135, CV-880, CV-990, B-47, B-52, B-747, F-100A, F-101, F-102, F-104, PA-30 Twin Comanche, JetStar, F-111, R4D, B-720, and B-47. Although previously a single-engine pilot, he became the Center's principal multi-engine pilot during a period of air-launches in which the pilot of the air-launch aircraft (B-29 or P2B) basically directed the operations. It was he who called for the chase planes before each drop, directed the positioning of fire rescue vehicles, and released the experimental aircraft after ensuring that all was ready for the drop. As pilot of the B-29 and P2B, Butchart launched the X-1A once, the X-1B 13 times, the X-1E 22 times, and the D-558-II 102 times. In addition, he towed the M2-F1 lightweight lifting body 14 times behind an R4D (Navy version of the C-47 and the DC-3). Among other awards, Butchart received the NACA Exceptional Service Medal for his decisions and actions when the X-1A exploded while attached to the B-29 launch aircraft on August 8, 1955. During his career, he wrote several technical reports and presented a number of research papers. He became one of 65 charter members of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots. He later was elected a Fellow of the Society and became its President in 1980. After receiving primary and secondary civilian pilot training, Butchart enlisted in the U.S. Navy in July 1942. Upon his completion of flight training at Corpus Christi, Tex., he joined torpedo-bomber Air Group VT-51 and flew the Grumman-General Motors TBM Avenger from the aircraft carrier San Jacinto in the South Pacific during World War II. He earned a Distinguished Flying Cross and a Presidential Unit Citation among other service medals. While continuing to fly in the Naval Reserve, he earned bachelor, degrees in aeronautical and mechanical engineering at the University of Washington. Following graduation in 1950, he worked as a design engineer for Boeing Aircraft before beginning his career as a research pilot. Butchart passed away on October 1, 2007. _________________________________________ The B-47A (49-1900) bomber was the first in the series of tail numbers to be built at the Boeing Aircraft Company in Witchita, Kansas. NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station obtained that B-47A Stratojet (NACA 150) to study the characteristics of a large, flexible swept-wing aircraft in 1953. The B-47A testing resulted in reports that gave engineers and design teams around the country access to reliable information on the dynamic behavior and response characteristics that could be expected of large, flexible sweptwing airplanes, such as the Boeing KC-135 and the B-707 transport. |
| Photo Date |
July 14, 1954 |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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Floods in the Midwestern Uni
| Title |
Floods in the Midwestern United States |
| Description |
Early May 2007 brought torrential spring rains to the Midwestern United States, and by May 9, the National Weather Service [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/hic/ ] had recorded flooding at 111 locations from North Dakota to Texas. At 15 locations, many of which were in Missouri, gauges measured major flooding. Thousands of people fled as the Missouri burst through levees in Missouri and Kansas, reported the Associated Press [ http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/05/09/missouri.flooding.ap/index.html ] on May 9. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image of floods along the Missouri River and its tributaries on May 8. Though clouds still covered much of the Midwest on May 8, a few breaks revealed the flood-swollen Missouri, Grand, and Thompson Rivers. The large image shows additional flooding in Missouri, Iowa, and Kansas. Both this and the lower image, taken on April 29 before the rains began to fall, were made with a combination of visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water on the ground. In this type of image, clouds are pale blue and white, water is dark blue or black, plant-covered land is green, and bare earth is tan pink. The tan and green speckled appearance of the landscape seen in the lower image is typical of agricultural land. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3 ] of the Midwest 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. |
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Floods in the Midwestern Uni
| Title |
Floods in the Midwestern United States |
| Description |
Early May 2007 brought torrential spring rains to the Midwestern United States, and by May 9, the National Weather Service [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/hic/ ] had recorded flooding at 111 locations from North Dakota to Texas. At 15 locations, many of which were in Missouri, gauges measured major flooding. Thousands of people fled as the Missouri burst through levees in Missouri and Kansas, reported the Associated Press [ http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/05/09/missouri.flooding.ap/index.html ] on May 9. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image of floods along the Missouri River and its tributaries on May 8. Though clouds still covered much of the Midwest on May 8, a few breaks revealed the flood-swollen Missouri, Grand, and Thompson Rivers. The large image shows additional flooding in Missouri, Iowa, and Kansas. Both this and the lower image, taken on April 29 before the rains began to fall, were made with a combination of visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water on the ground. In this type of image, clouds are pale blue and white, water is dark blue or black, plant-covered land is green, and bare earth is tan pink. The tan and green speckled appearance of the landscape seen in the lower image is typical of agricultural land. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?USA3 ] of the Midwest 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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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Heavy Rain in the US Midwest
| Title |
Heavy Rain in the US Midwest |
| Description |
The powerful storms that moved across the U.S. Midwest during the first week of May 2007 brought wind, hail, tornadoes, and drenching rain. This image shows rainfall totals over parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska between May 1 and May 8, based in part on measurements made by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite. More than 400 millimeters (15.7 inches) of rain fell over some regions, corresponding with locations where the National Weather Service reported severe weather. [ http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reports/070506_rpts.html ] A wide swath of red and orange (between 240 and 400 millimeters of rain) arcs in a clockwise direction from western Oklahoma, through central Kansas, and into southeastern Nebraska. The reddish-orange bull's-eye over southeastern Louisiana is evidence of the torrential rains that pounded visitors to the annual New Orleans Jazz Festival. South-central Texas' Edward Plateau was soaked with more than 240 millimeters of rain during the period, as well. From May 4 to May 8, the National Weather Service [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/ ] received approximately 683 reports of severe weather, 140 of which were reports of tornadoes, including the massive F5 [ http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=ddc&storyid=7828&source=0 ] tornado that devastated the city of Greensburg, Kansas. Beyond the damaging winds and tornadoes, the torrential rain triggered extensive flooding throughout the Central Plains. On the evening of May 7, flood warnings [ http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=crh&storyid=7865&source=0 ] were in effect from South Dakota to southern Texas, and by May 8, the Hydrologic Information Center [ http://www.weather.gov/ahps/ ] reported moderate to major flooding at 53 stream gauge sites in South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and Arkansas. The floods could be as severe as the 1993 flood, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16881 ] one of the costliest floods in U.S. history, reported the Associated Press. [ http://www.wlos.com/template/inews_wire/wires.national/203d853a-www.wlos.com.shtml ] NASA image by Hal Pierce |
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Rain in the U.S. Midwest
| Title |
Rain in the U.S. Midwest |
| Description |
The powerful storms that moved across the U.S. Midwest during the first week of May 2007 brought wind, hail, tornadoes, and drenching rain. This image shows rainfall totals over parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska between May 1 and May 8, based in part on measurements made by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite. More than 400 millimeters (15.7 inches) of rain fell over some regions, corresponding with locations where the National Weather Service reported severe weather. [ http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reports/070506_rpts.html ] A wide swath of red and orange (between 240 and 400 millimeters of rain) arcs in a clockwise direction from western Oklahoma, through central Kansas, and into southeastern Nebraska. The reddish-orange bull's-eye over southeastern Louisiana is evidence of the torrential rains that pounded visitors to the annual New Orleans Jazz Festival. South-central Texas' Edward Plateau was soaked with more than 240 millimeters of rain during the period, as well. From May 4 to May 8, the National Weather Service [ http://www.nws.noaa.gov/ ] received approximately 683 reports of severe weather, 140 of which were reports of tornadoes, including the massive F5 [ http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=ddc&storyid=7828&source=0 ] tornado that devastated the city of Greensburg, Kansas. Beyond the damaging winds and tornadoes, the torrential rain triggered extensive flooding throughout the Central Plains. On the evening of May 7, flood warnings [ http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=crh&storyid=7865&source=0 ] were in effect from South Dakota to southern Texas, and by May 8, the Hydrologic Information Center [ http://www.weather.gov/ahps/ ] reported moderate to major flooding at 53 stream gauge sites in South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and Arkansas. The floods could be as severe as the 1993 flood, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16881 ] one of the costliest floods in U.S. history, reported the Associated Press. [ http://www.wlos.com/template/inews_wire/wires.national/203d853a-www.wlos.com.shtml ] NASA image by Hal Pierce. |
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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. |
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Fires in the Southern Midwes
| Title |
Fires in the Southern Midwest |
| Description |
On April 4, 2007, dozens of fires were burning in the southern portions of the U.S. Midwest. Marked with red dots in this image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite, the fires are scattered across Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. Winds are blowing nearly due south, stretching smoke plumes from several of the fires. Though much of the landscape has "greened up" with the arrival of spring, higher elevations, such as the Ouachita Mountains, are still showing winter brown. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides twice-daily [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/ ] images of the United States in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
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Texas Greenup
| Title |
Texas Greenup |
| Description |
June 2007 was one of the wettest Junes on record for the state of Texas. Starting in late May, a string of low-pressure systems settled in over the U.S. Southern Plains and unleashed weeks of heavy to torrential rain. During the final week of June, much of Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas received more than 330 percent of their average rainfall, said the National Climatic Data Center. [ http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/us-weekly.php?year=2007&month=06&sat=30&submit_form=Submit&_submit_check=1#panom ] The widespread heavy rain brought deadly floods [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14350 ] to the entire region. On July 6, the Associated Press reported that every major river basin in Texas was at flood stage, an event that had not occurred since 1957. In addition to causing floods, the rains stimulated plant growth. The grassy, often arid, plains and plateaus of northern Mexico (bottom left), Texas (center), and New Mexico (top, left of center) burst to life with dense vegetation as this vegetation anomaly image shows. Regions where plants were growing more quickly or fuller than average are green, while areas where growth is below average are brown. Most of Texas is green, with a concentrated deep green, almost black, spot where vegetation growth was greatest. This area of western Texas is where the Pecos River flows out of New Mexico and heads southeast to the Rio Grande. In the darkest areas, vegetation was more than 100 percent above average. The brown spots in northeastern Texas and Oklahoma (top, right of center) may be areas where persistent clouds or water on the ground are hiding the plants from the satellite's view. Plants may also be growing less than average if swamped by too much rain. The image was made with data collected by the SPOT satellite between June 11 and June 20, 2007. NASA imagery created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using SPOT data provided courtesy of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service and processed by Jennifer Small and Assaf Anyamba of the GIMMS Group [ http://ltpwww.gsfc.nasa.gov/gimms/htdocs/ ] at NASA GSFC. |
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Texas Greenup
| Title |
Texas Greenup |
| Description |
June 2007 was one of the wettest Junes on record for the state of Texas. Starting in late May, a string of low-pressure systems settled in over the U.S. Southern Plains and unleashed weeks of heavy to torrential rain. During the final week of June, much of Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas received more than 330 percent of their average rainfall, said the National Climatic Data Center. [ http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/us-weekly.php?year=2007&month=06&sat=30&submit_form=Submit&_submit_check=1#panom ] The widespread heavy rain brought deadly floods [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14350 ] to the entire region. On July 6, the Associated Press reported that every major river basin in Texas was at flood stage, an event that had not occurred since 1957. In addition to causing floods, the rains stimulated plant growth. The grassy, often arid, plains and plateaus of northern Mexico (bottom left), Texas (center), and New Mexico (top, left of center) burst to life with dense vegetation as this vegetation anomaly image shows. Regions where plants were growing more quickly or fuller than average are green, while areas where growth is below average are brown. Most of Texas is green, with a concentrated deep green, almost black, spot where vegetation growth was greatest. This area of western Texas is where the Pecos River flows out of New Mexico and heads southeast to the Rio Grande. In the darkest areas, vegetation was more than 100 percent above average. The brown spots in northeastern Texas and Oklahoma (top, right of center) may be areas where persistent clouds or water on the ground are hiding the plants from the satellite's view. Plants may also be growing less than average if swamped by too much rain. The image was made with data collected by the SPOT satellite between June 11 and June 20, 2007. NASA imagery created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using SPOT data provided courtesy of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service and processed by Jennifer Small and Assaf Anyamba of the GIMMS Group [ http://ltpwww.gsfc.nasa.gov/gimms/htdocs/ ] at NASA GSFC. |
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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 |
|
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 |
|
Fires in the Southern Midwes
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
On April 4, 2007, dozens of
USA_AMO_2007094
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-04-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
USA_AMO_2007094 |
|
Floods in the Midwestern Uni
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
Missouri_AMO_2007128
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-05-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Missouri_AMO_2007128 |
|
Heavy Rain in the US Midwest
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
The powerful storms that mov
Midwest_TRM_2007128
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-05-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
Midwest_TRM_2007128 |
|
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 |
|
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 |
|
Rain in the U.S. Midwest: Im
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
The powerful storms that mov
ge_07663
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-05-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image courtesy Jesse Allen based on data provided by the http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ TRMM team. Caption by Steve Lang. |
| identifier |
ge_07663 |
|
Rain in the U.S. Midwest: Im
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
The powerful storms that mov
ge_07663
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-05-08 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image courtesy Jesse Allen based on data provided by the http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ TRMM team. Caption by Steve Lang. |
| identifier |
ge_07663 |
|
Texas Greenup: Image of the
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
June 2007 was one of the wet
texas_spt_2007171
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-06-20 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA imagery created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using SPOT data provided courtesy of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service and processed by Jennifer Small and Assaf Anyamba of the ltpwww.gsfc.nasa.gov/gimms/htdocs/ GIMMS Group at NASA GSFC. |
| identifier |
texas_spt_2007171 |
|
Texas Greenup: Image of the
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
June 2007 was one of the wet
texas_spt_2007171
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-06-20 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA imagery created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using SPOT data provided courtesy of the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service and processed by Jennifer Small and Assaf Anyamba of the ltpwww.gsfc.nasa.gov/gimms/htdocs/ GIMMS Group at NASA GSFC. |
| identifier |
texas_spt_2007171 |
|
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 |
|
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