Socked in Stratovolcano: Astronaut on ISS Captures Incredible View of Uninhabited Atlasov Island
Rising above the clouds and the Sea of Okhotsk, the uninhabited Atlasov Island appears as a distinctive dark landform from the view of an astronaut…
Earth Observatory News
Kilauea’s Lava Lake Returns – Hawaii’s Most Active Volcano Is Erupting Again
After two years of quiet, Kilauea, Hawaii’s youngest and most active volcano, is erupting again. In the early days of the volcano’s latest eruption, water…
“Smoking Mountain” – An Outburst From Popocatépetl Volcano in Mexico
Popocatépetl volcano—the name is Aztec for “smoking mountain” — is one of Mexico’s most active volcanoes. The glacier-clad stratovolcano has been erupting since January 2005,…
The Long, Troubling Decline of Arctic Sea Ice
Throughout 2020, the Arctic Ocean and surrounding seas endured several notable weather and climate events. In spring, a persistent heatwave over Siberia provoked the rapid…
Von Kármán’s Vortices: Key Mathematical Insight About Swirling, Asymmetrical Flow Patterns
On a clear day, the towering peaks on Fogo, Santa Antão, and São Nicolau stand out amid the flatter islands of Cabo Verde (Cape Verde)….
Bai Tu Long Bay, Vietnam and the Legend of the Mother Dragon
In traditional Vietnamese culture, the dragon is a powerful and sacred mythical creature. According to legend, Vietnam was constantly fighting off intruders from the north…
Shrinking Margins of Greenland: At Least 200 Coastal Glaciers Have Retreated Over the Past 20 Years
A recent study of Greenland’s ice sheet found that glaciers are retreating in nearly every sector of the island, while also undergoing other physical changes….
Elephant Island: The Incredible Survival Story of Ernest Shackleton and the Crew of HMS Endurance
When British explorer Ernest Shackleton and the crew of HMS Endurance lost their ship to crushing pack ice in the Weddell Sea in 1915, their…
Robinson Crusoe Island Captured by Landsat 8 Satellite
Popularized by the studies and writings of Charles Darwin, the Galápagos Islands gained fame for their abundance of endemic plants and animals—species found nowhere else…
Ecologically Important El Bibane Lagoon Photographed by Astronaut Aboard the Space Station
An astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) took this photograph of a 30-kilometer (20-mile) long lagoon on the eastern shore of Tunisia. A narrow…
Newberry Volcano Photographed by Astronaut Onboard the International Space Station
While passing over Oregon, an astronaut onboard the International Space Station (ISS) shot this photograph of Newberry Volcano in the eastern Cascade Mountains. With its…
Huacachina: The Only Natural Oasis in South America
If you accidentally stumbled upon the town of Huacachina, you might think it is a mirage. Huacachina is centered around a lagoon lined with lush…
California Cool Yule Tule
As winter moisture rolls in from the Pacific Ocean and makes snow on the Sierra Nevada range, it also can create blankets of white across…
La Niña: The Cooler Sister Returns
Though air and sea temperatures worldwide have been quite warm in 2020, the eastern and central Pacific Ocean recently grew milder with the return of…
Sea of Galilee Seen From Space – Source of Religious Inspiration and Intrigue
The Sea of Galilee in northern Israel—one of the lowest-lying bodies of water in the world—has long been a source of religious inspiration and intrigue….
Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasa Bearing Down on Island Nation of Fiji
The South Pacific island nation of Fiji is bracing for the arrival of severe tropical cyclone Yasa. Citizens were told to evacuate low-lying areas in…
Incredible Satellite View of the Moon’s Shadow Crossing the Surface of Earth During the Total Solar Eclipse
The first and only total solar eclipse of 2020 occurred on December 14, with the path of totality stretching from the equatorial Pacific to the…
Satellite Captures New Fires Scorching the Hills of Southern California
Fire season in California generally peaks from May through October. But as global temperatures have risen, so too has the state’s risk for fall season…
