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Gulf of Martaban
Title Gulf of Martaban
Completed 1999-12-03
A-40625
Dean Chapman displays tektit …
3/27/68
Description Dean Chapman displays tektites from Thailand
Date 3/27/68
Floods in Northern Thailand
Title Floods in Northern Thailand
Description *Floods in Northern Thailand* Pale blue marks the location of floods in northern Thailand in this false-color Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) image acquired on May 23, 2004, by the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The floods came on the heels of heavy rains, which gave an early start to the rainy season on May 19. According to news reports, 6,019 people were affected by floods and mudslides throughout the country. Six people were killed, and 79 houses were completely destroyed. The Thai government is blaming the floods on illegal logging. Forested land absorbs more water than cleared land because the trees influence how water falls and is absorbed. Once the trees are cleared, water that would have been absorbed runs off, creating more frequent flash floods. Deforestation also leads to landslides because the land is no longer anchored by trees. Vegetation in these images is bright green, and bare earth is pink and tan. Clouds are light blue. The large image shows widespread flooding south of the flooded area shown here at a resolution of 250 meters per pixel. NASA image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at GSFC
Floods in Northern Thailand
Title Floods in Northern Thailand
Description *Floods in Northern Thailand* Pale blue marks the location of floods in northern Thailand in this false-color Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) image acquired on May 23, 2004, by the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The floods came on the heels of heavy rains, which gave an early start to the rainy season on May 19. According to news reports, 6,019 people were affected by floods and mudslides throughout the country. Six people were killed, and 79 houses were completely destroyed. The Thai government is blaming the floods on illegal logging. Forested land absorbs more water than cleared land because the trees influence how water falls and is absorbed. Once the trees are cleared, water that would have been absorbed runs off, creating more frequent flash floods. Deforestation also leads to landslides because the land is no longer anchored by trees. Vegetation in these images is bright green, and bare earth is pink and tan. Clouds are light blue. The large image shows widespread flooding south of the flooded area shown here at a resolution of 250 meters per pixel. NASA image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at GSFC
Floods in Northern Thailand
Title Floods in Northern Thailand
Description *Floods in Northern Thailand* Pale blue marks the location of floods in northern Thailand in this false-color Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) image acquired on May 23, 2004, by the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The floods came on the heels of heavy rains, which gave an early start to the rainy season on May 19. According to news reports, 6,019 people were affected by floods and mudslides throughout the country. Six people were killed, and 79 houses were completely destroyed. The Thai government is blaming the floods on illegal logging. Forested land absorbs more water than cleared land because the trees influence how water falls and is absorbed. Once the trees are cleared, water that would have been absorbed runs off, creating more frequent flash floods. Deforestation also leads to landslides because the land is no longer anchored by trees. Vegetation in these images is bright green, and bare earth is pink and tan. Clouds are light blue. The large image shows widespread flooding south of the flooded area shown here at a resolution of 250 meters per pixel. NASA image courtesy Jesse Allen, based on data from the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at GSFC
Biomass Burning in Southeast …
Title Biomass Burning in Southeast Asia
Description For the past two months, wildfires and agricultural fires have littered the Indochina landscape, periodically filling the skies with a thick, grayish layer of smoke. This image was acquired on April 5, 2002, by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiomter (MODIS), flying aboard NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. Each of the red dots on the image represents an individual fire. As one can see, most are clustered around southern Cambodia, northern Thailand, and northern Laos—all areas that have undergone severe deforestation in recent years. (Please note that the high-resolution scene provided here is 500 meters per pixel. For a copy of this scene at the sensor's full resolution, visit the MODIS land rapid response system [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2002095-0405 ] site.) Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Biomass Burning in Southeast …
Title Biomass Burning in Southeast Asia
Description Many fires (red pixels) continued to burn throughout Southeast Asia on April 8, 2002, mostly concentrated in Myanmar. The skies over eastern Myanmar and western Thailand were filled with a thick pall of smoke (greyish pixels). Please note that the high-resolution scene provided here is 500 meters per pixel. For a copy of this scene at the sensor's fullest resolution, visit the MODIS Rapidfire site. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Heavy rains pounded northern Thailand starting on May 21, 2006, and by May 23, flash flooding, landslides, and overflowing rivers and reservoirs inundated 357 villages in five provinces, said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). On the afternoon of May 25, the clouds had cleared enough to give the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite this view of the floods. The image uses observations of shortwave and near-infrared energy to make water stand out against the land. Normally, water is black or dark blue in this type of infrared image, but here it is lighter blue, colored with mud. Clouds are white and a lighter shade of blue. Plant-covered land is bright green, and bare earth is tan. In the top image, the blue floods spread across tens of kilometers of what had been dry ground on May 6, lower image. Water levels had receded somewhat by May 25, when the top image was taken. According to OCHA, 30 people had been reported dead, 75 were missing, with 103,355 people affected by the flooding as of May 24. The large images provided above show Thailand at a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina ] of Southeast Asia are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team in a variety of resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Heavy rains pounded northern Thailand starting on May 21, 2006, and by May 23, flash flooding, landslides, and overflowing rivers and reservoirs inundated 357 villages in five provinces, said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). On the afternoon of May 25, the clouds had cleared enough to give the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite this view of the floods. The image uses observations of shortwave and near-infrared energy to make water stand out against the land. Normally, water is black or dark blue in this type of infrared image, but here it is lighter blue, colored with mud. Clouds are white and a lighter shade of blue. Plant-covered land is bright green, and bare earth is tan. In the top image, the blue floods spread across tens of kilometers of what had been dry ground on May 6, lower image. Water levels had receded somewhat by May 25, when the top image was taken. According to OCHA, 30 people had been reported dead, 75 were missing, with 103,355 people affected by the flooding as of May 24. The large images provided above show Thailand at a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina ] of Southeast Asia are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team in a variety of resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Though floods are not unusual in Thailand during the summer monsoon season, 2006 brought unusually heavy flooding. In some parts of the country, the floods were the worst they had been in 40 years, said the Dartmouth Flood Observatory. [ http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7efloods/Archives/2006sum.htm ] The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image of flooding around the cities of Pitsanulok and Phichit on September 7, 2006. The Yom and Nan Rivers were running high, and their surrounding wetlands were dark with water when compared with conditions earlier in the summer on July 23, lower image. In these images, water is dark blue, clouds are pale blue and white, and vegetation is bright green. Sparsely vegetated or bare land, such as cities, is tan. A photo-like, true-color version [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina ] of these images is available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Though floods are not unusual in Thailand during the summer monsoon season, 2006 brought unusually heavy flooding. In some parts of the country, the floods were the worst they had been in 40 years, said the Dartmouth Flood Observatory. [ http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7efloods/Archives/2006sum.htm ] The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured the top image of flooding around the cities of Pitsanulok and Phichit on September 7, 2006. The Yom and Nan Rivers were running high, and their surrounding wetlands were dark with water when compared with conditions earlier in the summer on July 23, lower image. In these images, water is dark blue, clouds are pale blue and white, and vegetation is bright green. Sparsely vegetated or bare land, such as cities, is tan. A photo-like, true-color version [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina ] of these images is available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Swollen by heavy monsoon rains, the Yom and the Nan Rivers paint wide black stripes across the bright green vegetation of northern Thailand in the top Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) image. The image was collected on September 18, 2006, by the MODIS sensor flying on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, and was made using light from the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Called false color because it does not reproduce Earth's features as a human eye sees them (like a digital photograph), this type of image makes the distinction between water and land clear. Water is dark blue or black, while plant-covered land is bright green. Bare or sparsely vegetated land is tan, and clouds are pale blue and white. In the top image, a break in the clouds reveals floods along the Yom and Nan Rivers. The lower image, taken on July 23, 2006, before the heavy rains began in August, provides a reference for the dry-season extents of the rivers. While water dots the land in the lower image, particularly in the wetland near the top edge of the image, the rivers are not clearly visible. In the top image, not only are the rivers distinct, but the wetland has also expanded with the influx of monsoon rain. According to the Dartmouth Flood Observatory, [ http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7efloods/Archives/2006sum.htm ] floods throughout northern Thailand submerged large tracts of farmland and forced thousands of evacuations in late August and early September. The large images provided above are at MODIS' maximum resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006261 ] of northern Thailand are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team in a variety of resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Swollen by heavy monsoon rains, the Yom and the Nan Rivers paint wide black stripes across the bright green vegetation of northern Thailand in the top Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) image. The image was collected on September 18, 2006, by the MODIS sensor flying on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, and was made using light from the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Called false color because it does not reproduce Earth's features as a human eye sees them (like a digital photograph), this type of image makes the distinction between water and land clear. Water is dark blue or black, while plant-covered land is bright green. Bare or sparsely vegetated land is tan, and clouds are pale blue and white. In the top image, a break in the clouds reveals floods along the Yom and Nan Rivers. The lower image, taken on July 23, 2006, before the heavy rains began in August, provides a reference for the dry-season extents of the rivers. While water dots the land in the lower image, particularly in the wetland near the top edge of the image, the rivers are not clearly visible. In the top image, not only are the rivers distinct, but the wetland has also expanded with the influx of monsoon rain. According to the Dartmouth Flood Observatory, [ http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7efloods/Archives/2006sum.htm ] floods throughout northern Thailand submerged large tracts of farmland and forced thousands of evacuations in late August and early September. The large images provided above are at MODIS' maximum resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006261 ] of northern Thailand are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team in a variety of resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Widespread flooding swept through central and northern Thailand from August through October 2006, in response to seasonal monsoon rains. Though monsoon floods are normal, 2006 saw exceptional flooding. By October 25, flood waters surrounded the country's capital, Bangkok. In these images, the city stretches out from the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River in a tan grid. Water, dark blue and black, encroaches on the city from all sides. The largest floods are in the north along the Chao Phraya, but additional floods pool on the east side of the city. According to The Nation, a Bangkok newspaper, floods throughout the country had impacted more than three million people and killed 104 people from late August through October 21. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite took both of the above images. The lower image, from September 5, shows the Bangkok area before the floods had extended to the region. Both images were made with visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water. In this type of image, plant-covered land is bright green, lightly or non-vegetated land is tan, clouds are pale blue and white, and water is dark blue or black. Fires have been outlined in red. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006298 ] of Thailand in both false color, such as the images shown here, and photo-like, natural color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Widespread flooding swept through central and northern Thailand from August through October 2006, in response to seasonal monsoon rains. Though monsoon floods are normal, 2006 saw exceptional flooding. By October 25, flood waters surrounded the country's capital, Bangkok. In these images, the city stretches out from the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River in a tan grid. Water, dark blue and black, encroaches on the city from all sides. The largest floods are in the north along the Chao Phraya, but additional floods pool on the east side of the city. According to The Nation, a Bangkok newspaper, floods throughout the country had impacted more than three million people and killed 104 people from late August through October 21. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite took both of the above images. The lower image, from September 5, shows the Bangkok area before the floods had extended to the region. Both images were made with visible and infrared light to highlight the presence of water. In this type of image, plant-covered land is bright green, lightly or non-vegetated land is tan, clouds are pale blue and white, and water is dark blue or black. Fires have been outlined in red. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006298 ] of Thailand in both false color, such as the images shown here, and photo-like, natural color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Captured on the morning of October 15, 2006, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, this bird's-eye view of Southeast Asia reveals remarkably extensive flooding on rivers throughout northern and central Thailand. The country was inundated with floods from late August to early October after unusually heavy monsoon rains and Typhoon Xangsane [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13917 ] pounded the region. By mid-October, nearly every major river was swollen, including the Chao Phraya, which runs through the country's capital, Krung Thep (Bangkok). Also along the Chao Phraya, about ninety kilometers north of Krung Thep (near the river's name in the image), is Ayutthaya. The Siamese capital from 1350 to 1767 and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, [ http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=576 ] the ancient city had been inundated with floods, reported Agence France Presse. [ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200610/s1764947.htm ] The floods threatened to destroy 25 Buddhist temples, forts, and pagodas, said AFP. To the east, the Mun and Chi Rivers also threatened historical and religious sites, said The Nation, a Bangkok newspaper, which called the floods the worst in a decade. Elsewhere in the top image, the Yom, Nan, and Pa Sak Rivers are also flooded. The lower image shows Thailand on September 4, 2006, before September and October's monsoon rains and typhoon. While the Yom and the Nan Rivers were flooded from earlier monsoon rains, the other rivers in the country were at their normal levels. The lightning-shaped black streaks formed by the flooded rivers in the top image were not present. Both images were made with visible and infrared light to create a greater contrast between the flooded rivers and the plant-covered land. In these images, water is black or dark blue. Vegetated land is green, and lightly vegetated or bare land is tan. Clouds are pale blue and white. Fires have been marked with red dots. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006288 ] of Thailand in both false color, such as the images shown here, and photo-like, natural color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Captured on the morning of October 15, 2006, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite, this bird's-eye view of Southeast Asia reveals remarkably extensive flooding on rivers throughout northern and central Thailand. The country was inundated with floods from late August to early October after unusually heavy monsoon rains and Typhoon Xangsane [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13917 ] pounded the region. By mid-October, nearly every major river was swollen, including the Chao Phraya, which runs through the country's capital, Krung Thep (Bangkok). Also along the Chao Phraya, about ninety kilometers north of Krung Thep (near the river's name in the image), is Ayutthaya. The Siamese capital from 1350 to 1767 and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, [ http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=576 ] the ancient city had been inundated with floods, reported Agence France Presse. [ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200610/s1764947.htm ] The floods threatened to destroy 25 Buddhist temples, forts, and pagodas, said AFP. To the east, the Mun and Chi Rivers also threatened historical and religious sites, said The Nation, a Bangkok newspaper, which called the floods the worst in a decade. Elsewhere in the top image, the Yom, Nan, and Pa Sak Rivers are also flooded. The lower image shows Thailand on September 4, 2006, before September and October's monsoon rains and typhoon. While the Yom and the Nan Rivers were flooded from earlier monsoon rains, the other rivers in the country were at their normal levels. The lightning-shaped black streaks formed by the flooded rivers in the top image were not present. Both images were made with visible and infrared light to create a greater contrast between the flooded rivers and the plant-covered land. In these images, water is black or dark blue. Vegetated land is green, and lightly vegetated or bare land is tan. Clouds are pale blue and white. Fires have been marked with red dots. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/2006288 ] of Thailand in both false color, such as the images shown here, and photo-like, natural color. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Though South East Asia faces monsoon flooding every year, 2006 brought unusually heavy and widespread flooding. Among the countries hardest hit was Thailand. On October 11, 2006, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite detected fresh flooding in northeast Thailand. In the top image, the east-flowing Mun River and its tributaries are swollen far beyond their normal extents. The lower image shows the region a little over a month earlier, at which time the rivers were not even visible. Both images were made with both visible light, the light that the human eye sees, and infrared light. This combination makes water, black or dark blue, stand out from land, which is bright green where plant-covered and tan where no or few plants grow. The scattered clouds that cover both scenes are white (warm, water clouds) and light blue (cold, ice clouds). According to the Associated Press, [ http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/09/asia/AS_GEN_Thailand_Floods.php ] 39 people have died in Thailand since August because of monsoon flooding, and at least 138,000 others have suffered from waterborne illnesses. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/ ] of Southeast Asia are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Floods in Thailand
Title Floods in Thailand
Description Though South East Asia faces monsoon flooding every year, 2006 brought unusually heavy and widespread flooding. Among the countries hardest hit was Thailand. On October 11, 2006, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite detected fresh flooding in northeast Thailand. In the top image, the east-flowing Mun River and its tributaries are swollen far beyond their normal extents. The lower image shows the region a little over a month earlier, at which time the rivers were not even visible. Both images were made with both visible light, the light that the human eye sees, and infrared light. This combination makes water, black or dark blue, stand out from land, which is bright green where plant-covered and tan where no or few plants grow. The scattered clouds that cover both scenes are white (warm, water clouds) and light blue (cold, ice clouds). According to the Associated Press, [ http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/09/asia/AS_GEN_Thailand_Floods.php ] 39 people have died in Thailand since August because of monsoon flooding, and at least 138,000 others have suffered from waterborne illnesses. Daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_Indochina/ ] of Southeast Asia are available from the MODIS Rapid Response Team. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC.
Drought in Southeast Asia
Title Drought in Southeast Asia
Description Little rain has fallen in Southeast Asia after an early end to the rainy season [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12569 ] in October 2004, leaving the region in severe drought. From southern China, through the Indochina and Malay Peninsulas, and into some of the islands of Indonesia, crops are shriveling, and in some places, drinking water is scarce. According to news reports, the drought will cost farmers in Thailand up to US $193.2 million after 809,000 hectares of crops were lost. Vietnam has lost US $60 million in crops, and up to 1.3 million people do not have access to clean water. Other countries in the region have been similarly affected, with food shortages in Cambodia and a lack of drinkable water in Hainan, China. Rains eased the drought [ http://www.fas.usda.gov/pecad/highlights/2005/03/China%20Drought/Chinadrought.htm ] in parts of China in late February, but much of the region remains parched. It is the worst drought in 50 years. The above image illustrates the extent of the drought in February 2005. The image shows outgoing longwave radiation, which is a measure of the amount of heat radiated from the surface of the Earth. Since clouds tend to be colder than the Earth?s surface, the measurement shows the distribution of clouds. It is one way to monitor drought because where there are no clouds, there is no rain. In this case, scientists have compared the amount of heat radiated from the surface this year to the average collected between 1979 and 1995. The result shows that significantly fewer cool clouds gathered over Southeast Asia in 2005 than normal, as reflected by the red that stretches from Australia to southern China. This image was derived from measurements made by the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) onboard the NOAA-POES satellite series. OLR anomaly image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data analyzed by Assaf Anyamba and provided by NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction [ http://www.ncep.noaa.gov/ ].
Drought in Southeast Asia
Title Drought in Southeast Asia
Description Little rain has fallen in Southeast Asia after an early end to the rainy season [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12569 ] in October 2004, leaving the region in severe drought. From southern China, through the Indochina and Malay Peninsulas, and into some of the islands of Indonesia, crops are shriveling, and in some places, drinking water is scarce. According to news reports, the drought will cost farmers in Thailand up to US $193.2 million after 809,000 hectares of crops were lost. Vietnam has lost US $60 million in crops, and up to 1.3 million people do not have access to clean water. Other countries in the region have been similarly affected, with food shortages in Cambodia and a lack of drinkable water in Hainan, China. Rains eased the drought [ http://www.fas.usda.gov/pecad/highlights/2005/03/China%20Drought/Chinadrought.htm ] in parts of China in late February, but much of the region remains parched. It is the worst drought in 50 years. The above image illustrates the extent of the drought in February 2005. The image shows outgoing longwave radiation, which is a measure of the amount of heat radiated from the surface of the Earth. Since clouds tend to be colder than the Earth?s surface, the measurement shows the distribution of clouds. It is one way to monitor drought because where there are no clouds, there is no rain. In this case, scientists have compared the amount of heat radiated from the surface this year to the average collected between 1979 and 1995. The result shows that significantly fewer cool clouds gathered over Southeast Asia in 2005 than normal, as reflected by the red that stretches from Australia to southern China. This image was derived from measurements made by the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) onboard the NOAA-POES satellite series. OLR anomaly image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data analyzed by Assaf Anyamba and provided by NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction [ http://www.ncep.noaa.gov/ ].
Drought in Southeast Asia
Title Drought in Southeast Asia
Description China?s lush island province, Hainan is in the grip of a severe drought, which started in late 2004. Green with sugar and rubber plantations, natural vegetation, and other crops in 2004 (lower image) by February 2005 (top), Hainan is brown and parched. According to media reports, over half of the arable land?approximately 196,200 hectares?is threatened by the dry weather. Water is in short supply, with reservoirs holding just over 30% of their normal water storage and 64 small and mid-sized rivers dry, leaving about 555,000 of the island?s residents with limited access to drinking water. The government may soon begin to ration water in urban areas. The water shortage is also visible in a comparison of the two above images. Almost without exception, every black body of water on the island is significantly smaller on February 7, 2005 than it was on February 12, 2004. The drought is affecting nations across Southeast Asia, including parts of Vietnam, Thailand, India, and China, and may be linked to a weak El Niño, which tends to decrease rainfall in these regions. No significant rain is expected in Hainan until May. The above images were acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The scenes are shown in false color so that plant-covered areas are bright green and bare soil is a pinkish tan. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Earth Sciences DAAC.
Drought in Southeast Asia
Title Drought in Southeast Asia
Description China?s lush island province, Hainan is in the grip of a severe drought, which started in late 2004. Green with sugar and rubber plantations, natural vegetation, and other crops in 2004 (lower image) by February 2005 (top), Hainan is brown and parched. According to media reports, over half of the arable land?approximately 196,200 hectares?is threatened by the dry weather. Water is in short supply, with reservoirs holding just over 30% of their normal water storage and 64 small and mid-sized rivers dry, leaving about 555,000 of the island?s residents with limited access to drinking water. The government may soon begin to ration water in urban areas. The water shortage is also visible in a comparison of the two above images. Almost without exception, every black body of water on the island is significantly smaller on February 7, 2005 than it was on February 12, 2004. The drought is affecting nations across Southeast Asia, including parts of Vietnam, Thailand, India, and China, and may be linked to a weak El Niño, which tends to decrease rainfall in these regions. No significant rain is expected in Hainan until May. The above images were acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The scenes are shown in false color so that plant-covered areas are bright green and bare soil is a pinkish tan. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Earth Sciences DAAC.
Drought in Southeast Asia
Title Drought in Southeast Asia
Description Southeast Asia?s rainy season came to an early end in October 2004, and since that time, little rain has fallen on the Indochina Peninsula and parts of southern China. The dry spell has launched the region into the worst drought it has seen in years, with wells and reservoirs drying, crops withering, and, for some, food shortages. The effects of the drought are clearly visible in this image, generated from data collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA?s Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] and Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellites between February 18 and March 5, 2005. The image shows vegetation anomaly, a measure of plant density and health over a wide area. To determine the state of vegetation this year, the data are compared to the average of vegetation measurements collected during the same period in 2000 to 2004. Regions that are drier, where plants are less dense and healthy than normal, are brown, while areas with denser-than-average vegetation are green. In the latter half of February 2005, Southeast Asia was very dry, with plants showing clear signs of drought stress. Clouds, masked out in grey, covered much of southern China, central Vietnam, Laos, and parts of Thailand and Cambodia during this two-week period. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided by the joint 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/ ].
Early Dry Season in Southeas …
Title Early Dry Season in Southeast Asia
Description In a typical monsoon season in South East Asia, the rains fall until October, but this year, the heavens went dry three to four weeks early. For farmers, who rely on monsoon rains to nourish crops, the early onset of the dry season could mean a reduced harvest. According to the Production Estimates and Crop Assessment Division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture?s Foreign Agricultural Service, the lack of rain affected the tail end of the growing season, and while most crops should be fine, yields could be reduced because of a lack of rain. The government of Thailand has already announced that the rice harvest will be less than expected, and the AFP reports that the Cambodian government is concerned about potential food shortages. In Cambodia, 80-85 percent of all rice is grown during the monsoon season. The early end to the rainy season could spell trouble for the next growing season, which depends on irrigation instead of rainfall. Not only did the rains end early, but less rain fell during the monsoon, and that could mean a shortage of irrigation water stored in reservoirs, particularly if the dry season lasts longer than normal. The above image confirms the absence of clouds associated with precipitation over Southeastern Asia during the month of October. The image is based on measurements of outgoing longwave radiation (OLR), the amount of heat being reflected from the Earth back into space, in Watts per square meter. Clouds tend to be cold, while land masses are warmer. Outgoing longwave radiation can help scientists monitor rainfall by showing where rainfall clouds are, or in this case, where they aren?t. The above image is a comparison of the amount of outgoing longwave radiation observed in October 2004, to the October average observed from 1979 to 1995. Areas that radiated more heat than average are red and those that radiated less are blue. Southeast Asia was radiating more heat than normal in October?a sign that fewer cool clouds covered the region. Indonesia, northern Australia, and parts of China also appear to be warmer, and possibly drier, than normal. This image was derived from measurements made by the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) onboard the NOAA-POES satellite series. OLR anomaly image created by Jesse Allan, Earth Observatory, using data analyzed by Assaf Anyamba and provided by NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction [ http://www.ncep.noaa.gov/ ].
Early Dry Season in Southeas …
Title Early Dry Season in Southeast Asia
Description In a typical monsoon season in South East Asia, the rains fall until October, but this year, the heavens went dry three to four weeks early. For farmers, who rely on monsoon rains to nourish crops, the early onset of the dry season could mean a reduced harvest. According to the Production Estimates and Crop Assessment Division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture?s Foreign Agricultural Service, the lack of rain affected the tail end of the growing season, and while most crops should be fine, yields could be reduced because of a lack of rain. The government of Thailand has already announced that the rice harvest will be less than expected, and the AFP reports that the Cambodian government is concerned about potential food shortages. In Cambodia, 80-85 percent of all rice is grown during the monsoon season. The early end to the rainy season could spell trouble for the next growing season, which depends on irrigation instead of rainfall. Not only did the rains end early, but less rain fell during the monsoon, and that could mean a shortage of irrigation water stored in reservoirs, particularly if the dry season lasts longer than normal. The above image confirms the absence of clouds associated with precipitation over Southeastern Asia during the month of October. The image is based on measurements of outgoing longwave radiation (OLR), the amount of heat being reflected from the Earth back into space, in Watts per square meter. Clouds tend to be cold, while land masses are warmer. Outgoing longwave radiation can help scientists monitor rainfall by showing where rainfall clouds are, or in this case, where they aren?t. The above image is a comparison of the amount of outgoing longwave radiation observed in October 2004, to the October average observed from 1979 to 1995. Areas that radiated more heat than average are red and those that radiated less are blue. Southeast Asia was radiating more heat than normal in October?a sign that fewer cool clouds covered the region. Indonesia, northern Australia, and parts of China also appear to be warmer, and possibly drier, than normal. This image was derived from measurements made by the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) onboard the NOAA-POES satellite series. OLR anomaly image created by Jesse Allan, Earth Observatory, using data analyzed by Assaf Anyamba and provided by NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction [ http://www.ncep.noaa.gov/ ].
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The beaches of Khao Lak, Thailand were struck by a tsunami 2-3 hours after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake of December 26, 2004. Although 500 km away from the epicenter, the waves were 10 meters (33 feet) high. A resort area popular with Northern European tourists, luxury resorts dotted the coastline (January 3, 2003 image, lower center). Buildings and vegetation were scoured by the waves, leaving foundations and bare soil. Beach sand was also removed by the tsunamis. These high-resolution satellite images were acquired by Space Imaging?s [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite. Images copyright Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The beaches of Khao Lak, Thailand were struck by a tsunami 2-3 hours after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake of December 26, 2004. Although 500 km away from the epicenter, the waves were 10 meters (33 feet) high. A resort area popular with Northern European tourists, luxury resorts dotted the coastline (January 3, 2003 image, lower center). Buildings and vegetation were scoured by the waves, leaving foundations and bare soil. Beach sand was also removed by the tsunamis. These high-resolution satellite images were acquired by Space Imaging?s [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite. Images copyright Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description The Indonesian province of Aceh was hit hardest by the earthquake and tsunamis of December 26, 2004. Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Early Western media attention was focused on Sri Lanka and Thailand, even though the earthquake epicenter was closer to Aceh, and the largest waves struck the northwestern coast of Sumatra. On Decemebr 29, estimates of the death toll in Indonesia were over 80,000—more than half the global total. The town of Lhoknga, on the west coast of Sumatra near the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh, was completely destroyed by the tsunami, with the exception of the mosque in the city's center. These high-resolution satellite images, acquired by Space Imaging's [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ] Ikonos satellite, show Lhoknga before (lower) and after (top) the earthquake and Tsunami. Almost all the trees, vegetation, and buildings in the area were washed away. Behind the town, low-lying agricultural areas remained covered with water 4 days after the disaster, and sand on the nearby beaches was completely removed. The wave height [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12645 ] might have exceeded 15 meters (50 feet) when it struck the shore. Equivalent devestation extends 225 km southeast along the Sumatran Coast, in a band up to 3 km (1.9 miles) deep. Imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12644 ] (above) shows the affected area as a thin strip of brown along the coast. Ikonos images copyright Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, [ http://www.crisp.nus.edu.sg/ ] National University of Singapore and Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description After the deadly tsunamis generated by the December 26, 2004, earthquake near Sumatra devastated the island of Sri Lanka off the southeastern tip of India, the waves continued westward and slammed into southeastern India, along a stretch of coastline called the Coromandel Coast. Cities, towns, and fishing villages up and down the coast of the state of Tamil Nadu were victims of the waves. This image from the Ikonos satellite shows the city of Chennai, a harbor city on the southeastern Indian coast, located about 350 kilometers north of the Palk Strait, which separates Sri Lanka and India. The background image was captured on December 29, 2004, after the waves? arrival. Although the devastation captured in this image may not seem as obvious as the damage to Sri Lanka [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12643 ], parts of Thailand [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12648 ], or northern Sumatra, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12647 ] a careful eye can see the impacts. Two areas of damage have been cut away and shown at full resolution, in a comparison with imagery from August 14, 2002. Near the top of the image, a stretch of houses or other structures has been wiped out. Where the houses used to be is an open expanse of beach. Near the bottom of the image, boats that were neatly lined up in their moorings along three piers in the August 14 image are piled on top of the piers in the image from December 29. In the large image, other impacts are evident: sand and debris across roads, for example, and dramatic changes in the shape and size of some beaches. Images copyright Space Imaging. [ http://www.spaceimaging.com/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description These maps show modeled maximum wave height (top) and travel time (lower) for the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 26, 2004. Although the epicenter of the earthquake that triggered the tsunami was near the northern tip of Sumatra, the sea floor shifted along an arc stretching about 1200 km to the north. This shifting pushes a mass of water across the Indian Ocean. The top map shows the maximum wave height that likely occured when the wave came ashore. The coastline of Sumatra, near the fault boundary, received waves over 10 meters tall, while those farther away (Sri Lanka and Thailand) were caught by waves over 4 meters. On the other side of the Indian Ocean, Somalia and the Seychelles were struck by waves approaching 4 meters in height. Travel times (lower) ranged from minutes (Sumatra) to 8 hours (Somalia) or more. Maps courtesy NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory Tsunami Research Program [ http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tsunami/ ]
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description *Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis*, Nearly three weeks after an earthquake triggered the deadly Indian Ocean tsunami on December 26, 2004, satellite analysis continues to illustrate the magnitude of the disaster. This pair of ASTER images contrasts before and after views of a portion of the western coastline of Thailand in the Phang-Nga province, about 50 kilometers north of the island of Phuket. In these images, vegetation is dark red, while bare earth is grey. On December 31, five days after the waves swept ashore, large sections of the shoreline are grey, stripped of vegetation or covered in mud and sand. Water has broken through several places along the northern beach. Tiny fingers of blue water slice into the land where no inlet existed in the image on the right. Like Phuket, this region of coastline is a tourist mecca, and beachfront on the Andaman Sea (left edge of both images) is dotted with golf courses, resorts, and other tourist-centered development, as well as national marine and terrestrial parks, including the Khao Lak-lam Ru National Park. Most of the land in the park is found in the mountainous region away from the shore, just to the south of the center of the images. However, the park?s terrain also includes the forest-covered cape that extends westward into the Andaman Sea. The image acquired before the tsunami is actually a composite of two separate ASTER images. The left third of the image was acquired on November 15, 2002, while the right two-thirds of the image was taken on February 28, 2003. Neither scene covered the same area as the December 31 image, but by combining the two, a comparison image can be made. The comparison shows an interesting pattern of damage along the coast. It is the long, smoothly curving beaches that have been devastated by the tsunami, not the land that juts into the ocean. Several factors probably contributed to this pattern. First, elevation is certainly a factor. The headland in the center of the image is probably a high rocky point that would not be easily inundated by a large wave. The wrinkle of inland mountains appears to curve out to the coast between the two damaged beaches. The beaches, on the other hand, probably have a low elevation that gently slopes toward the ocean, allowing any water that comes ashore to sweep further inland. Second, the headland itself may have contributed to the damage on its flanks. Waves approaching the point would tend to be diffracted, or broken up, sending additional energy into the beaches on either side of the point. This would amplify the waves along the beaches. By the same principle, the concave shape of the beach to the south focuses wave energy and wave run-up. Another contributing factor to the pattern of damage seen here is ocean bathymetry, the shape and depth of the ocean floor. Tsunami height and run-out (the horizontal distance the wave travels) are larger where the ocean floor has a gentle slope. Rocky coastlines that drop into deep ocean are not as affected. Finally,, vegetation patterns may have altered the type of damage the wave created when it came ashore. The forested cape appears to be untouched, possibly because the trees served as a break. The developed beach land probably had less dense vegetation to cushion the wave?s impact. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Image interpretation courtesy Tim Gubbels, SSAI.
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Title Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
Description *Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis*, Nearly three weeks after an earthquake triggered the deadly Indian Ocean tsunami on December 26, 2004, satellite analysis continues to illustrate the magnitude of the disaster. This pair of ASTER images contrasts before and after views of a portion of the western coastline of Thailand in the Phang-Nga province, about 50 kilometers north of the island of Phuket. In these images, vegetation is dark red, while bare earth is grey. On December 31, five days after the waves swept ashore, large sections of the shoreline are grey, stripped of vegetation or covered in mud and sand. Water has broken through several places along the northern beach. Tiny fingers of blue water slice into the land where no inlet existed in the image on the right. Like Phuket, this region of coastline is a tourist mecca, and beachfront on the Andaman Sea (left edge of both images) is dotted with golf courses, resorts, and other tourist-centered development, as well as national marine and terrestrial parks, including the Khao Lak-lam Ru National Park. Most of the land in the park is found in the mountainous region away from the shore, just to the south of the center of the images. However, the park?s terrain also includes the forest-covered cape that extends westward into the Andaman Sea. The image acquired before the tsunami is actually a composite of two separate ASTER images. The left third of the image was acquired on November 15, 2002, while the right two-thirds of the image was taken on February 28, 2003. Neither scene covered the same area as the December 31 image, but by combining the two, a comparison image can be made. The comparison shows an interesting pattern of damage along the coast. It is the long, smoothly curving beaches that have been devastated by the tsunami, not the land that juts into the ocean. Several factors probably contributed to this pattern. First, elevation is certainly a factor. The headland in the center of the image is probably a high rocky point that would not be easily inundated by a large wave. The wrinkle of inland mountains appears to curve out to the coast between the two damaged beaches. The beaches, on the other hand, probably have a low elevation that gently slopes toward the ocean, allowing any water that comes ashore to sweep further inland. Second, the headland itself may have contributed to the damage on its flanks. Waves approaching the point would tend to be diffracted, or broken up, sending additional energy into the beaches on either side of the point. This would amplify the waves along the beaches. By the same principle, the concave shape of the beach to the south focuses wave energy and wave run-up. Another contributing factor to the pattern of damage seen here is ocean bathymetry, the shape and depth of the ocean floor. Tsunami height and run-out (the horizontal distance the wave travels) are larger where the ocean floor has a gentle slope. Rocky coastlines that drop into deep ocean are not as affected. Finally,, vegetation patterns may have altered the type of damage the wave created when it came ashore. The forested cape appears to be untouched, possibly because the trees served as a break. The developed beach land probably had less dense vegetation to cushion the wave?s impact. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Image interpretation courtesy Tim Gubbels, SSAI.
Monsoon Rains Flood Thailand …
Title Monsoon Rains Flood Thailand and Malaysia
Description Parts of the Malay Peninsula, including southern Thailand and northern Malaysia, were hit hard by severe flooding after torrential monsoon rains that fell over two weeks in mid-December. December is part of the region's northeast monsoon, when prevailing northeasterly winds flow into the region from across the South China Sea. Because the winds carry abundant moisture, heavy rains that last several days are common during the northeast monsoon. In 2005, several multi-day rainy episodes followed closely together with little break, resulting in widespread flooding. Some regions received even more rain when the prevailing winds butted up against mountains and more moisture was squeezed out of the sky. According to news reports, floods and mudslides have driven thousands from their homes, isolated thousands more, and caused at least 30 deaths in Thailand and Malaysia. The flood-inducing rains are illustrated in this image, created using rainfall totals measured by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite between December 12 and December 19, 2005. Rainfall totals in excess of 300 millimeters (12 inches), shown in red, extend all along the eastern coastline of the Malay Peninsula from around Pak Phanang in southern Thailand to near Chukai in Malaysia. The highest totals, approaching 500 millimeters (20 inches) correspond to the darkest red areas near Songklha and Hat Yai along the southern Thai coastline. Not surprisingly, these were among the communities that suffered the most damage. The TRMM-based, near-real-time, Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency, JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Monsoon Rains Flood Thailand …
Title Monsoon Rains Flood Thailand and Malaysia
Description Parts of the Malay Peninsula, including southern Thailand and northern Malaysia, were hit hard by severe flooding after torrential monsoon rains that fell over two weeks in mid-December. December is part of the region's northeast monsoon, when prevailing northeasterly winds flow into the region from across the South China Sea. Because the winds carry abundant moisture, heavy rains that last several days are common during the northeast monsoon. In 2005, several multi-day rainy episodes followed closely together with little break, resulting in widespread flooding. Some regions received even more rain when the prevailing winds butted up against mountains and more moisture was squeezed out of the sky. According to news reports, floods and mudslides have driven thousands from their homes, isolated thousands more, and caused at least 30 deaths in Thailand and Malaysia. The flood-inducing rains are illustrated in this image, created using rainfall totals measured by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite between December 12 and December 19, 2005. Rainfall totals in excess of 300 millimeters (12 inches), shown in red, extend all along the eastern coastline of the Malay Peninsula from around Pak Phanang in southern Thailand to near Chukai in Malaysia. The highest totals, approaching 500 millimeters (20 inches) correspond to the darkest red areas near Songklha and Hat Yai along the southern Thai coastline. Not surprisingly, these were among the communities that suffered the most damage. The TRMM-based, near-real-time, Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency, JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Title Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Description As can be seen in this true-color scene acquired on March 29, 2002, many fires dot the landscape across much of Southeast Asia, filling the skies with a thick pall of smoke over much of the region. The burning in this region has been intense throughout March of this year. This image was acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The red boxes (see the high-resolution image) indicate where active fires are burning. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Title Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Description As can be seen in this true-color scene acquired on March 29, 2002, many fires dot the landscape across much of Southeast Asia, filling the skies with a thick pall of smoke over much of the region. The burning in this region has been intense throughout March of this year. This image was acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The red boxes (see the high-resolution image) indicate where active fires are burning. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Title Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Description As can be seen in this true-color scene acquired on March 13, 2002, there were many fires burning across Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia on March 13, 2002, filling the skies with smoke across much of the landscape. This image was acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. The red boxes (see the high-resolution image) indicate the areas recently burned or still burning. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Title Fires and Smoke in Thailand
Description An astonishing number of fires dotted the landscape across much of Southeast Asia on April 5, 2002, filling the skies with a thick, greyish layer of smoke over much of the region. The burning in this region has been intense throughout March and April of this year. This image was acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite. Please note that the high-resolution scene provided here is 500 meters per pixel. For a copy of this scene at the sensor?s fullest resolution, visit the MODIS Rapidfire [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2002092-0402 ] site. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
North Reef Island, Andaman S …
Title North Reef Island, Andaman Sea
Description On December 26, 2004, one of the largest earthquakes in recorded history struck offshore of the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. The ocean floor heaved in some places and sank in others, creating catastrophic tsunamis that raced across the Indian Ocean. Hundreds of thousands of people died as the waves struck coastlines from Thailand to Sri Lanka to Somalia. In addition to tsunami damage, satellite images of reefs, islands, and coastlines identified signs of permanent elevation change—sinking or uplift—along the fault between the Indo-Australia and Burma plates. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12640 ] In places such as North Reef Island, shown in this pair of images from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite, the quake lifted the reefs permanently out of the water. The images use visible and infrared light detected by ASTER to make different land surfaces stand out clearly from one another: water is blue, vegetation is red, coral or bare sand appears white. In the "before" image, from December 2, 2004, the submerged reef creates a bright blue glow around the island. In the "after" image, from February 4, 2005, the white coral stands completely up out of the water. It is even tinged with red, which suggests the exposed coral had died, and algae had colonized it. In the weeks and months after the earthquake, satellite images provided broad coverage of an area where ground-based observations were initially very limited. A team of scientists led by Caltech Ph.D. geology student Aron Meltzner discovered changes in elevation along nearly 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) of the tectonic plate boundary. The images revealed that the earthquake rupture extended 100 kilometers (62 miles) farther north than estimates based on seismic and Global Positioning System (GPS) data suggested. The feature article Rise and Fall: Satellites Reveal Full Length of Tsunami-Generating Earthquake [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/Aceh/aceh.html ] describes how scientists used satellite images to map the length of the earthquake rupture zone. The article includes additional satellite and ground-based images of elevation changes resulting from the 2004 Aceh-Andaman earthquake. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]
North Reef Island, Andaman S …
Title North Reef Island, Andaman Sea
Description On December 26, 2004, one of the largest earthquakes in recorded history struck offshore of the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. The ocean floor heaved in some places and sank in others, creating catastrophic tsunamis that raced across the Indian Ocean. Hundreds of thousands of people died as the waves struck coastlines from Thailand to Sri Lanka to Somalia. In addition to tsunami damage, satellite images of reefs, islands, and coastlines identified signs of permanent elevation change—sinking or uplift—along the fault between the Indo-Australia and Burma plates. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=12640 ] In places such as North Reef Island, shown in this pair of images from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite, the quake lifted the reefs permanently out of the water. The images use visible and infrared light detected by ASTER to make different land surfaces stand out clearly from one another: water is blue, vegetation is red, coral or bare sand appears white. In the "before" image, from December 2, 2004, the submerged reef creates a bright blue glow around the island. In the "after" image, from February 4, 2005, the white coral stands completely up out of the water. It is even tinged with red, which suggests the exposed coral had died, and algae had colonized it. In the weeks and months after the earthquake, satellite images provided broad coverage of an area where ground-based observations were initially very limited. A team of scientists led by Caltech Ph.D. geology student Aron Meltzner discovered changes in elevation along nearly 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) of the tectonic plate boundary. The images revealed that the earthquake rupture extended 100 kilometers (62 miles) farther north than estimates based on seismic and Global Positioning System (GPS) data suggested. The feature article Rise and Fall: Satellites Reveal Full Length of Tsunami-Generating Earthquake [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/Aceh/aceh.html ] describes how scientists used satellite images to map the length of the earthquake rupture zone. The article includes additional satellite and ground-based images of elevation changes resulting from the 2004 Aceh-Andaman earthquake. NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the NASA/GSFC/MITI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. [ http://asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]
Pollution over China
Title Pollution over China
Description This false-color image shows concentrations of carbon monoxide at an altitude of roughly 18,000 feet (500 millibars) in the atmosphere off the coast of Asia and out over the Pacific Ocean. This image represents a composite of data collected over a 20-day period, from January 1-20, 2003, by the Measurements Of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite. The colors represent the mixing ratios of carbon monoxide in the air, given in parts per billion by volume. In this scene, values range from as high as 220 ppbv (purple pixels) to as low as 40 ppbv (blue pixels). The white areas show where no data were collected, either due to persistent cloud cover or gaps between viewing swaths. During the early part of the year, there is considerable outflow of pollution from China and southeast Asia. Carbon monoxide is a good tracer of this pollution since it is produced by incomplete combustion processes such as the burning of fossil fuels in urban and industrial areas, the use of biofuels in developing countries, and by biomass burning in the tropics. The Asian plume can be followed as it propagates out over the Pacific Ocean, and in some instances this plume reaches the west coast of the United States. Over China, industrial emissions are mainly responsible for the high levels of carbon monoxide observed in the image. During the time these data were collected by MOPITT, other satellite sensors observed heavy, widespread particulate pollution [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/ natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=5331 ] over this region. Over southeast Asia, the high carbon monoxide levels coincide with satellite observations of fires in Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/ natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=5359 ]. Image courtesy NCAR MOPITT Team
Fires in Myanmar
Title Fires in Myanmar
Description The agricultural fire season in Southeast Asia spreads smoke across a large portion of Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos in this photo-like image captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite on March 4, 2007. Places where MODIS detected actively burning fires are marked in red. During the area's dry season (roughly fall-winter in the Northern Hemisphere), intentional land management fires, as well as accidental forest fires that spread from agricultural areas, are common in Southeast Asia. The large image provided above has a spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides the image at additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center
Fires in Myanmar
Title Fires in Myanmar
Description From eastern India to Vietnam, scores of fires were burning across the landscape on March 13, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite passed overhead and captured this photo-like image. Places where MODIS detected actively burning fires are marked in red. Gray smoke pools into low-lying parts of the terrain and spreads in a dingy haze across clouds along the eastern edge of the scene. Agricultural and accidental fires are common across Southeast Asia in the dry season, which roughly spans the Northern Hemisphere fall and winter months. People burn crop and pasture land to prepare for the upcoming planting and growing seasons, and fires also escape control and spread into nearby forests. The fires pictured in this part of Southeast Asia lagged the widespread occurrence of burning in Cambodia and southern Thailand that MODIS observed as early as January 2007. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14085 ] Although it is not necessarily immediately hazardous, such large-scale burning can have a strong impact on weather, climate, human health, and natural resources. You can download a 250-meter-resolution Fires in Myanmar KMZ file [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Mar2007/myanmar_amo_2007072.kmz ] for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html ] NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team.
Fires in Myanmar
Title Fires in Myanmar
Description In Southeast Asia, fires are common and widespread throughout the dry season, which roughly spans the northern hemisphere winter months. People set fires to clear crop stubble and brush and to prepare grazing land for a new flush of growth when the rainy season arrives. These intentional fires are too frequently accompanied by accidental fires that invade nearby forests and woodlands. The combination of fires produces a thick haze that alternately lingers and disperses, depending on the weather. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite shows fire activity on March 19, 2007, across eastern India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and China. Places where MODIS detected actively burning fires are marked in red on the image. The darker green areas are generally more wooded areas or forests, while the paler green and tan areas are agricultural land. Smoke pools over low-lying areas of the hilly terrain in gray pockets. The green tops of rolling hills in Thailand emerge from a cloud of low-lying smoke. According to news reports from Thailand, the smoke blanket created air quality conditions that were considered unhealthy for all groups, and it prompted the Thai Air Force to undertake cloud-seeding attempts in an effort to cleanse the skies with rain. Commercial air traffic was halted due to poor visibility. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team.
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