First Record for the 2001 Earth Science Videotapes

2001 EARTH SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES
Tape Title	Record ID	Date Produced	TRT:	Synopsis
EARTH SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS 2001: HIGH TECH FOR A THRIVING PLANET	G01-085	01/28/02	01:26:34	Research conducted through NASA's Earth Science Enterprise this past year might best be described as "the big picture". New types of remote sensing techniques blossomed in 2001 following years of careful preparation and cultivation. From first ever measurements of the global carbon cycle, to important new research into how aerosols affect the planet's temperature, to remarkable research describing how germs particles travel the globe as stowaways on microscopic grains of dust, the space agency collected data about our home that will shape scientific inquiries for year to come.One of the best and safest ways to study volcanoes is to analyze data about them somewhere else. However, getting that data has often put researchers not only in peril, but in the challenging position of solving the practical problems associated with its acquisition. Now a pair of instruments recently launched on NASA's flagship Earth observing satellite is helping vulcanologists not only get the information they need, but do so safely, and to a degree of accuracy never before possible.
TAPE CONTENTS:
ITEM (1): Measures Of Change (Reporter Package) - Same planet, different look. In 2001, NASA painted the Earth with a new pallet, affording researchers powerful insights into interconnections among various complex global systems. High above the southernmost continent, the Landsat and Radarsat spacecraft collected data that NASA researchers used to map changes in the Antarctic ice cap. By comparing images taken over time, experts developed remarkable moving maps that describe velocity and direction of glaciers to a degree never before achieved. Since the northern and southern ice caps play a major role in regulating the Earth's temperature, this new data about their most fundamental behavior is a major step in understanding large-scale climate issues. And the ice caps are dynamic places, too. In November of 2001 a gigantic 7 mile long slab of ice from the Pine Island Glacier caught the scientific community by surprise when it crashed into the ocean more than a year earlier than had been expected. But while changes in the ice offer clues to an evolving planet, changes in that planet's color describe the life that lives on it. Enter SeaWiFS, a low cost mission that this year paid off big. After three years of continuous data collection, the SeaWiFS team assembled a first ever snapshot of the Earth's carbon cycle on a global scale. By watching the ebb and flow of carbon as it's taken up by plant life in the oceans and on land, researchers are beginning to connect global biological trends to physical changes in the planet. In 2001, the Earth had a first of its kind medical assessment. In tandem with this measurement of the global heartbeat is evidence that plant growth on Earth is increasing due to warmer average temperatures. By comparing satellite images of vegetation and temperature over specific regions, researchers concluded that plant growth density and the growing season's average length are both increasing. But the study of climate and its relation to life depends on our ability to sight locations on the globe. This year NASA sighted the globe like never before. Using data collected by a suite of satellites, the space agency fused images of different places into seamless zooms. As we pull back from the Earth in a way that highlights gradual change in perspective, we come to see our home as not merely a collection of different places, but one unbroken sphere, all points fully interconnected.
ITEM (2): State Of The Art Applied: Earth Science At Work (Reporters Package) - Oenology is the study of wine making. So why, then, are some of California's best oenologists suddenly interested in remote sensing? Aficionados know that it isn't enough just to grow grapes. Subtleties in soil chemistry, weather, moisture, and many other factors can have significant impacts on a vintage. That's where remote sensing comes in. By using new techniques to monitor complex growing conditions in terms of a few meters instead of an entire vineyard, California's multi-million dollar wine industry can uncork yield and flavor potentials to new degrees of precision. Remote sensing technology is advancing rapidly. Take the Altus II, a new, pilotless airplane that fuses internet connectivity with advanced data collection capabilities. In tests this year, the Altus II demonstrated how fire managers could keep track of dangerous wildfires without having to risk the safety of personnel. Operated by remote control, the airplane collected visible and invisible infrared data from hot spots and transmitted them to data processing centers via satellite. Including data collection, transfer, image refinement, and distribution to people in charge, the total time to get information is less than fifteen minutes. So: grape growing and pilotless planes. What's the connection? Try precision farming. Using the latest in global positioning system technology, NASA experts are helping to develop agriculture systems that can operate within precise parameters without need of human hands on the controls. By fusing remote sensing data with advanced driverless machines, GPS navigation will help growers manage farms of the future.
ITEM (3): Frozen But Not Immobile: Antarctica In Motion [GSFC] - Antarctica is a dynamic and changing continent. Recent mapping missions from multiple satellites, including Landsat 7 and Canada's Radarsat-1, have studied the continent extensively and discovered several new features which highlight the evolution of the continent as ice cracks, shifts, flows and melts. From the formation of a new iceberg, to the break-up of an ice shelf, Antarctica is more than just a land frozen in time. Faster Than A Speeding Glacier - It's not that fast, actually. But in terms of moving surface features over land, the Lambert Glacier is one fast mass of ice. Using a technique known as interferometry, researchers using the Radarsat spacecraft measured velocity and direction parameters for ice there. More than 500 kilometers (about 311 miles) long, when the Lambert Glacier reaches the adjoining Amery Ice Shelf it can be moving at more than one kilometer (two-thirds of a mile) per year. CREDIT: NASA/CSA (2) The Amery Ice Shelf - At the mouth of the Lambert Glacier spreads the Amery Ice Shelf. While ice shelves mostly grow from glaciers pushing down towards the sea they also grow from precipitation. Ice shelves respond to climate change faster than sheets of ice on the ground or continental glaciers. Of particular interest is whether observed changes in various ice shelves are the result of natural processes or are anthropogenic--that is, the result of actions taken by humans. CREDIT: NASA/CSA/OSU (3) Ronne Ice Shelf - The Ronne Ice Shelf grows primarily due to a constant flow from inland ice sheets. Where shearing stresses are greater than the strength of the ice itself, cracks form. These cracks ultimately widen and spread like varicose veins in the frozen skin of the coast, only to break loose and become icebergs. Early in the 1990's a slab of ice the size of Delaware broke free from this (4) Fimbul Ice Shelf -,Icebergs form when hunks of ice break away from glaciers pushing into the ocean. Ice shelves are the edges of those glaciers, extending out into the ocean faster than ice bergs can break off from the edge. The Fimbul Ice Shelf has remained relatively consistent in its appearance for the last thirty years, but researchers are paying close attention to changes. Ice shelves are considered to be particularly sensitive to climatic changes and scientists have detected a marked retreat of several along the Antarctic Peninsula. CREDIT: NASA/CSA/OSU (5) Larsen Ice Shelf - In 1978, scientists predicted that global warming would lead to a disintegration of Antarctic Peninsula ice shelves. Spaceborne data indicate that this prediction may be coming true. In these before and after images, note the dramatic change in the apparent shoreline. Scientists captured the first image in using the ERS-1 satellite in 1992. In the second image, collected by Radarsat in 1997, huge changes have come to the coastline.
THE SKY ITEM (4): Slow Motion Crumble: The Larsen Ice Shelf Breaks Up [GSFC] - Most people regard the desolate expanses of polar ice as practically unchanging and imperturbable, poetically bookending the rest of our vibrant, blue-green world. Not so, says a new study. According to a paper released in the latest issue of the Journal of Glaciology, major stretches of Antarctica's Larsen Ice Shelf literally collapsed into floating splinters as several recent warmer than normal summers took their toll. The research adds strong evidence to the case that climate change can have a significant impact on the condition of the Earth's polar caps, which in turn can play a major role in changes to wider planetary climate and environmental conditions. (1) Before And After The Larsen Ice Shelf is one of several so-called ice shelves in Antarctica. Although not the largest, experts consider it to be most in jeopardy of further recession due to its comparatively northern position. In this sequence, we see how the ice there has changed through time, starting in December 1993 and ending in March 2000. These images are the product of NOAA's AVHRR instrument, (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer), flying aboard that agency''s POES (Polar Orbiting Environmental Spacecraft) satellite. Image dates are the following: December 26, 1993 February 13, 1995 March 21, 1998 November 21, 1998 March 2, 2000 (2) A Process Of Change: What Happened To Shatter The Ice - As melting water on the surface of an ice shelf fills in fissures and crevasses, pressure builds in the structure of the sheet. That process can either increase gradually, or it can be repeated seasonally, with melting and re-freezing forcing the split to widen. What can happen is either a major break due to specific forces from the water wedge, or a gradual weakening of a wide section of shelf, ultimately rent asunder by tides or storms. The process is believed to be more a function of mean summertime temperatures, as opposed to overall annual temperatures.
ITEM (5): Monitoring Ice From Space [GSFC] - Remote sensing techniques provide an excellent way to measure changes in glaciers over time. The Landsat satellite series has captured the recession of a glacier on Iceland's largest ice cap over almost a 30 year time period. The Breidamerkurjökull (brathe-a-mer-ker-yokull,) an outlet glacier on the Vatnajökull (vat-na-yokull) ice cap, has receded by as much as 2 km since 1973. Though ground measurements continue to be taken and are generally more accurate, the Landsat images can provide coverage and fill in gaps where ground measurements cannot be conducted. (1) Change At Breidamerkurjökull Iceland, 1973-2000 - Images taken by Landsat 1 on September 22, 1973 and Landsat 7 on September 23, 2000 show the almost two kilometer (1.2 mile) recession of the Breidamerkurjökull over the 27 year period. You can see the creation of icebergs in the lake in front of the glacier. In these scenes, bare glacier ice surfaces appear bluish-white, while those covered in snow are bright white. Water surfaces are dark blue and land surfaces appear reddish. Credit: NASA/USGS (2) More Change: Breidamerkurjökull 1997-2000 - A closer-in view of the Breidamerkurjökull shows the changes over a three year time period, between 1997 and 2000 (Landsat 5 on August 13, 1997, to September 23, 2000 from Landsat 7). The endpoint, or terminus, of the glacier shows the most obvious change. Credit: NASA/USGS
ITEM (6): Missing Lake: The Dissappearance Of Lake Chad [GSFC] - When it thrived, Lake Chad was one of those ironic points of planetary formation in that it seemed to defy the vast ocean of sand directly to its north. Persistent drought has caused the lake to drop from its former sixth place position in the list of world's largest lakes; it is now one tenth it's former size. This Landsat time series can not only help quantify the changes there, but can help researchers evaluate the root causes for such large transformation events on Earth, from climate change to human use of natural resources. (1) Fifteen Years Of A Shrinking Lake - The most dramatic decrease in the size of the lake is shown in the fifteen years between January 1973 and January 1987. Beginning in 1983 the amount of water used for irrigation began to increase. Ultimately, between 1983 and 1994, the amount of water diverted for purposes of irrigation quadrupled from the amount used in the previous 25 years. The red color denotes vegetation on the lakebed and the ripples on the western edge of the lake denote sand dunes formed by the wind. Credit: NASA/USGS (2) Lake Chad Today - In this composite of Landsat-7 images from November 2000 to February 2001 we see Lake Chad as it appears today. The small patch of visible blue that is now the lake stands in stark contrast to the wide swath of the old lakebed (shown in green, indicating vegetation.) Credit: NASA/USGS
ITEM (7): Bits Of Dust Carry Microbes Across The Sea [GSFC] - Compared to past centuries, travel around the globe has never been easier for millions. But new research supported by NASA shows that global travel is not just for homo sapiens. Tiny forms of microscopic life can "hitch a ride" across vast stretches of ocean by adhering to bits of dust caught in the wind. Experts believe that these travelers can not only help explain certain biological events such as sicknesses in some Caribbean coral populations, but also point to a need for responsible oversight of regions where much of the dust originates. Evidence about this kind of dust and microbial particle transport emphasizes a global need to keep better track of biological and chemical contaminants. (1) Microbes Ride The Dust - During the dry season in North Africa, storms in the Sahara Desert and the nearby Sahel kick up vast clouds of dust. Starting as fine particles in the arid topsoil, it's transported into the atmosphere by winds and may be carried as high as 10,000 feet where it gets picked up by easterly trade winds. Typically it takes 5 to 7 days for the dust clouds to cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach The Caribbean and The Americas. In this animation we see a depiction of how microbes might "hitch a ride" inside the irregular nooks and crannies found on the surfaces of dust particles. Once safely ensconced, they travel across the ocean. CREDIT: NASA. (2) Dust Images From Around The World - According to recent studies, thick dust concentrations and its ability to reach high altitudes is the cause of decreased rainfall, not the result as it is sometimes erroneously believed. The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) on board the Orb View-2 Satellite captured these images of dust storms around the globe. 1) Shown as a mass of high altitude dust off the northwestern coast of Africa on February, 26th 2000, this storm is roughly the size of Spain 2) These images show two dust events around the Mediterranean Sea. All three continents bordering the Mediterranean are subject to the effects of dust storms. a) July 18th 2000 from north Africa towards Italy b) April 18th 2001 northward from Egypt 3) This image shows a wide region of the Middle East covered by dust. SeaWiFS acquired the data for this picture on May 20th 1999. Credit: NASA/ORBIMAGE (3) African Dust Causes Algae Blooms - Each year clouds of Saharan dust deposit iron into the waters off the West Florida coast. Once there, plant-like bacteria use the iron to set the stage for red tides. When iron levels rise, these bacteria called Trichodesmium fix nitrogen in the water, converting it to a form usable by other marine life. However the addition of biologically usable nitrogen in the water also makes the Gulf of Mexico a more likely environment for toxic algae to bloom. These two images of Florida taken by NASA's Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) on board the Orb View-2 Satellite from Feb. 25, 1998 & Oct. 30, 1998, show phytoplankton blooms (green). Sometimes blooms like the ones shown create conditions favorable for red tides. Credit: NASA/ORBIMAGE (4) Saharan Dust Moving Across Atlantic - Research using satellites to monitor dust arrivals and Trichodesmium blooms could lead to forecasting of red tides. These two visualizations use data from NASA's Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) satellite instrument show storm activity in the Sahara Desert region generating clouds of dust. Easterly trade winds carry the dust across the Atlantic Ocean and into the Gulf of Mexico. The TOMS data were rendered and combined with a world map to help scientists track the progress of the clouds of dust. The tan and orange colors in these images primarily show high concentrations of dust. Some aerosols from biomass burning can also be seen. a) TOMS July 2000 Aerosol Index b) TOMS May - June 14,1983 Aerosol Index (dustiest year on record) Credit: NASA
ITEM (8): Aerial Fire And Disaster Monitoring Without A Pilot [ARC] - Firefighting managers often confront the dilemma of allocating precious resources to combat forest fires while minimizing risk to their personnel. Now a new, experimental vehicle is being put through its paces so that it might take the place of people in harm's way. (1) Uninhabitated, But Not Without A Brain - Called the Altus II, this uninhabited aerial vehicle (UAV) carries an extensive array of communications and data collection gear. But it doesn't carry a pilot. Navigation takes place via remote control from safe locations miles away. Data collected by the instruments on board get beamed to the InMarsat satellite, and then downlinked for image processing. Maps generated from the data can be delivered to fire managers in as little as fifteen minutes following acquisition. (2) Internet In The Air - The system offers certain advantages over traditional fire spotting plans with human crews. Instead of having to bring a crew back to an airport where imagery collected in flight can be processed and analyzed, the Altus II transmits the data back almost immediately. Plus, flying at a relatively low altitude of 10,000 to 15,000 feet, instruments onboard the aircraft can both pinpoint small scale regions as well as take in wider regions for geographic context.
ITEM (9): Color, Bouquet, Infrared Absorption: Making Wine With The Help Of NASA Spacecraft [ARC] - Measurements taken from several NASA satellites and aircraft are being put to work in the creation of California wines. By measuring growing area features like light levels, water availability, chlorophyll, and more, vintners are learning how to maximize their acreage and avoid problems in their cultivation plans. (1) Ground Validation And A Little Fermentation - In Napa Valley California, grape growers with the Robert Mondavi winery are using remote sensing data to manage micro-regions of their vineyards. This precision agriculture is facilitating maximized yields on grapes, plus offering experts the ability to make subtle changes in their mixes. For researchers studying remote sensing techniques, the arrangement works well, too. As a commercial partnership, the space agency gets the benefit of ground validation of its measurements--a built in advantage to developing next generation remote sensing techniques.
ITEM (10): Farming By Remote Control [JPL] - They call it precision farming. By using remote sensing technology developed by NASA, farmers are beginning to develop new techniques for managing their crops and maximizing yields. A combination of data analysis and global positioning systems may even allow some farmers to leave their tractors in the care of sophisticated computer programs, designed to drive the machines without a driver. (1) Driving Lessons - Using software developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and data from the Global Positioning System network, farmers can tap in to a wealth of highly information about their fields. By working in collaboration with a private company called NavCom, valuable information about soil, moisture, and a raft of other criteria can be measured to within 10 centimeters and reach tractors and their drivers at work on the back forty. (2) Farm Machines At Work - A variety of new technologies are changing the way modern agriculture operates. Not only are new levels of accuracy in data acquisition starting to come on line, but remotely operated farm machinery may some day soon alleviate the long days of driving for many who make their livings working the land.
ITEM (11): Getting Closer: Zooming In To Earth [GSFC] - A trio of Earth observing satellites--NASA's eyes in the skies--brings you these spectacular views of city life in America. Visualizers at the Goddard Space Flight Center developed these "great zooms" using some powerful computer technology and data from the satellites Terra, Landsat 7, the commercial platform called IKONOS. Starting with our camera high above the Earth, we rush in toward the surface at what would be an impossible speed for any known vehicle. The images these satellites provide are more than just pretty pictures, though. They give scientists the data they need to study the biology of our planet, from aerosol levels in the air to farmland distribution on the ground to plankton growth in our oceans. (1) This Planet Earth: Great Zooms From Space: American Cities - No doubt about it: these are new. Using data from different spacecraft and some powerful computer technology, visualizers at the Goddard Space Flight Center present you with the following collection of American cities in a way you've never seen them before. Starting with our camera high above the Earth, we rush in towards the surface at what would be an impossible speed for any known vehicle. Enjoy the ride! Featured Cities Include: Washington, DC Atlanta, GA Los Angeles, CA San Francisco, CA Orlando, FL Chicago, IL Tucson, AZ (2) Zooms From Space: How Did They Do That? - There's no Earth observing telescope parked in orbit. There are no geosynchronous elevators on which a camera can be mounted. The images that went into each of the remarkable city zooms come from data collected by a group of Earth imaging satellites. By taking data sets from different satellites that each show the Earth at various spatial levels, a sequence of images was electronically knitted together. Computer experts used images from MODIS, Landsat 7, and a remarkable commercial satellite called Ikonos to create these zooms. In virtual space the viewer travels far more than a thousand miles, but in real terms, nothing besides electrons, photons, and an elite group of computer and spacecraft personnel have moved to make these images possible. (3) The Desert Blooming: Urban Growth In Las Vegas - Las Vegas is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. Over a period of 27 years, a series of Landsat satellites has taken pictures of Las Vegas from space. Seen in sequence, the series vividly displays powerful forces of urban growth there. Spreading out from the center of town, we see how construction and its effects has changed the nature of the surrounding area, replacing natural features in many parts, and simply altering characteristics in others. (4) Mt. St. Helens Over Time - The explosion of Mt. St. Helens volcano in Washington State on May 18, 1980 sets the scene for one of Landsat's most important capabilities. As a means for archiving surface features, researchers can study how the Earth changes over time. In this sequence, pictures of the mountain taken in 1973, 1983, and 2000 show how the eruption changed the surrounding area. Notice how the north face of the mountain dramatically changed following the blast. The crater's mouth elongated, and significant ash deposits altered the down slope terrain. (5) Circling The Crater: Aster Sees Mt. St. Helens - Taken on August 8, 2000, the sequence shows a virtual fly-around of Mt. St. Helens volcano in Washington State. A part of the Cascade Range of mountains, Mt. St. Helens began to wake from more than a hundred years of slumber in the beginning of 1980. When it ultimately erupted on May 18 of that year, the energy released actually caused the disintegration of the mountain's top. Computer experts enhanced the visualization's to reflect a more familiar look of a wooded area. ASTER data taken in the visible and near infrared parts of the spectrum were draped over a digital topographic model, itself created by the 3-D stereo imaging capabilities of the instrument. The vertical relief of the image has been exaggerated by a factor of two to enhance the surface features. (6) Case Study: El Reno, Oklahoma - At different levels of resolution, with different types of data available, Terra can show regions of the Earth in comparative terms. By those comparisons, experts can assess what present conditions are on the ground to a highly accurate degree, as well as recognize how a given region is changing over time, or changing in relation to surrounding regions. This sequence of ASTER data showing El Reno, Oklahoma is a good example. (7) A Thickness of Sky - On the left we see a stripe of ground running across the border between Idaho and Montana. This scene comes from the MISR instrument on Terra. As the image scrolls down, we see tendrils of smoke drifting up from fires burning. On the right side of the screen we see a corresponding image showing data about the atmosphere above the region. The data displayed is a visual representation of what's called "aerosol optical thickness", a measurement of the amount of light absorbed by the smoke and haze in the atmosphere. (8) Fire Signatures In Idaho - Not only can ASTER zoom in close to a subject on the ground, but it can also assess its thermal characteristics. This can provide useful information for officials on the ground in dealing with fires, volcanos, and other natural events. Here we see ASTER data of fires that happened last summer in Idaho. The scene first shows the area of the fires, zooms in for a closer look, then shows a thermal signal indicating hot spots on the ground. (9) Nine Eyes On Montana Fires - MISR is a single instrument on Terra composed of nine different cameras. By using images from those cameras either in combination, alone, or in sequence, sophisticated information can be gleaned. Here we see a still picture of the fire region in Montana. We see haze over the area as smoke drifts high into the atmosphere. As MISR's nine cameras cycle through the scene, the change in perspective allows us not only to see different angles of the ground and the particles of clouds themselves, but also to measure cloud height. (10) Catching The Light In The Cracks - MISR's nine cameras are useful for surface measurements, too. On the Pine Island glacier in Antarctica, a large crack has recently appeared. In very little time last year, the crack spread more than 25 kilometers (15 miles) across the glacier. The value of a space-based perspective is the ability to take in a wide area. With MISR, detailed analysis of this particular surface feature can be studied across the entire length of the fissure. By using images taken by the forward, nadir, and aft cameras, we can see differences in reflectance in the crack very clearly. This helps scientists track the crack as it grows as well as better understand the forces that led to its formation. (11) Mozambique Flooding - Following weeks of heavy rains in late Winter 2000, massive flooding inundated wide tracts of eastern and southern Africa, displacing more than 200,000 people. This side by side Landsat sequence shows the comparative size of rivers in Mozambique before and during the floods. Notice how the high waters have all but covered the lowlands, far exceeding the boundaries of the normal river system. (12) Mozambique Flooding Compared To Size Of Washington DC - This sequence shows the scale of the tragic floods that washed through Mozambique in 2000. As the visualization begins, we see the relative size of Washington, DC, shown in red, superimposed over the flood area. In this case, remote Earth imagery becomes useful as a tool for communication, allowing accurate and clear description of the scale of a particular natural event. (13) Losing Forests In Bolivia - This scene starts in space, high above South America. As we zoom in closer, we see the national outlines of Bolivia come into view on the map. By focusing on one particular region, we're able to see effects of deforestation in the equatorial forest. The sequence that follows shows two images of the Santa Cruz region of Bolivia. The first was taken in 1984. Landsat 7 took the second in 2000. In just a few short years, we see how intense agricultural development has transformed the forest. (14) Trees Falling: Mapping Deforestation In Rondonia, Brazil - Data gathered over time by several in the Landsat series of spacecraft shows enormous tracts of forest disappearing in Rondonia, Brazil. This territory underwent an enormous rise in population towards the end of the twentieth century, buoyed by cheap land offered by the national government for agricultural use. It's useful to note how the human phenomenon of deforestation generally works, especially in the dense tropical forests of Brazil. Systematic cutting of a road opens new territory to potential deforestation by penetrating into new areas. Clearing of vegetation along the sides of those roads tends to fan out to create a pattern akin to a fish skeleton. As new paths appear in the woods, new areas become vulnerable. The spaces between the "skeletal bones" fall to defoliation, and another inch of the Earth's biological rudder is no longer reliably steering the planet into the future.
ITEM (12): Changes In The Air--Hawaiian Islands Alter Wind Currents [JPL] - The ocean and the atmosphere do not simply share a boundary. They interact in complex ways just now being explored by advanced spacecraft and computing systems. Around the islands of Hawaii, researchers have found a dramatic example of this relationship in the form of the world's longest wind wake. The peaks of the comparatively high landmasses surrounded by ocean interrupt trans-Pacific winds moving through the islands of the 50th state. (1) Diverting A River Of Air - Here we see Pacific winds intersecting the Hawaiian archipelago. As they pass among the islands their trajectories and velocities are altered, causing the world's largest wake. Research like this could never be done before the successful deployment of advanced space-based remote sensing systems like QuikSCAT. (2) Earth Systems Interacting - Scientists are learning more about how major planetary systems interact by studying this unique phenomenon. Research like this might help explain how the atmosphere and the ocean affect in mutually reactive ways. On a different note, this research also has implications for a discipline not usually in the purview of NASA, namely anthropology. It is possible that ocean currents now understood to be tied directly to the Hawaiian Islands might have helped early travelers navigate the vast distances of the Pacific, offering clues to early human migration. (3) Visible Wind: The Quickscat Satellite - QuikSCAT is the name of a satellite with one instrument on board, called SeaWinds. SeaWinds measures near-surface wind speed and direction regardless of weather at the planet's surface. It uses a specialized microwave radar designed specifically for the task.
ITEM (13): Echos From The Blast: Ten Years After Mt. Pinatubo [GSFC] - June 15, 2001 marked the tenth anniversary of the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, one of the most destructive volcanic events of the last century. Found on the Bataan Peninsula on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, the volcano had been dormant for 500 years when clouds of sulfur dioxide and tons of ash blasted skyward from its central crater. Ultimately, over 600 people died in the explosion and its aftermath. In addition to the devastation on the ground, the eruption had far reaching effects on the global atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide and dust ejected into the stratosphere affected both global temperature and Earth's protective layer of ozone for years. (1) Landsat Looks At Mt. Pinatubo - This recent false color Landsat-7 image, from January 2001, shows Mt. Pinatubo as it stands today. The caldera is seen in the middle of the image, underneath clouds. Ten years after the blast, vegetation is re-growing on the slopes of the mountain (in green.) Streams of mud, called lahars, (resulting from ash from the eruption mixing with water- seen as the lighter sediment) continue to flow down the sides of the mountains, as well as channels of water (darker streams). However, as vegetation grows back, the ash becomes more stabilized and less likely to form the destructive lahars. Credit: NASA/USGS/University of Hawaii (2) Sulfur Dioxide After The Eruption - The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo blasted a huge cloud of sulfur dioxide, shown in red, into the stratosphere. This data taken from NASA's Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) instrument shows that initial burst of sulfur dioxide and its international path in the days following the eruption, from June 16th to June 30th. The sulfur gas cloud dissipates as the gas turns into droplets of sulfuric acid. Both the gas and subsequent acid were contributors to the overall dust cloud that cooled the global climate. Credit: NASA. (3) Decrease In The Ozone Levels - During the year and a half after the eruption, global stratospheric ozone levels decreased as a result of chemical reactions with the ozone and the sulfur dioxide gases released by the volcano. However, the initial effect of the injection of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere was so strong, that a small hole was created in the ozone layer, (from June 15th, 1991 through June 30, 1991) as seen here, in blue, using TOMS data. This visualization shows global ozone levels before and after the eruption. After the hole dissipates, continued low levels of ozone, in very light blue, can be seen around the tropics. Credit: NASA
THE CARBON CYCLE ITEM (14): The Colors Of Life: Seawifs Captures Three Years Of The Carbon Cycle [GSFC] - Everything about life on Earth depends on life in the ocean. After all, this is a blue planet, with about 70 percent of the total surface awash with one of the most common molecular compounds known: water. The oceans regulate the planet's biological wellbeing. But water alone is not enough. Life in its most common forms demands a ready supply of a particular element if it's to thrive: carbon. It's the same stuff that composes lowly coal, and it's the core of proud tree trunks. Carbon is the root of all life on Earth, and as it's complex dance carries it through the biosphere, the Earth's state of health responds. (1) Think Small: Phytoplankton And The Carbon Cycle's Foundation - The ocean is filled with life. One of the most important varieties found there is the most humble: phytoplankton. They're tiny, single celled plant organisms that form the root of the oceanic food chain. For years, researchers have only been able to study phytoplankton in discrete areas and synthesize a variety of suppositions about how it interacts with the natural world But a global look at these miniscule plants has not been possible. Until now. (2) Colorful Shadows: Inferring Carbon's Cycle - Following three years of continual data collected by the SeaWiFS instrument, NASA has gathered the first record of photosynthetic productivity in the oceans. A measurement of photosynthesis is essentially a measurement of successful growth, and growth means successful use of ambient carbon. The process begins with a measurement of surface chlorophyll concentration. Chlorophyll is the material that allows plant cells to convert sunlight into energy, thus enabling them to grow. Healthy color signatures indicate the successful use of carbon, The fundamental building block for life. In other words, lots of green indicates lots of chlorophyll; lots of chlorophyll implies healthy photosynthesis; strong photosynthesis indicates growth, and growth indicates successful use of carbon. (3) Water Planet: Living Planet - NASA designed SeaWiFS to study ocean processes. But the mission has surpassed its initial design goals. By carefully calibrating the sensor, experts have been able to use SeaWiFS data to monitor life on land, too. The project has noticed an increase in plant productivity on land in the past three years. Scientists believe the increased productivity is tied to increased rainfall averages connected to the most recent El Nino phenomena. (4) The Carbon Record, Past And Present - Here we see a graph showing ambient atmospheric carbon going back roughly a thousand years. Since 1958, researchers working at a field station near the Mauna Loa caldera in Hawaii have collected data about ambient carbon dioxide levels once an hour. Their findings, daily averages constituting the longest continuous record of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the world, are powerful. Since they began tracking it, the record of ambient atmospheric carbon dioxide shows a steady increase, year after year. The data shows an annual pulse with respect to the presence of carbon, coinciding with seasonal variations. That pulse not only marks the heartbeat of the cycle, but also gives researchers a point of reference for future study into how the cycle may be changing. (5) Carbon And The Land - The Fast Cycle - During the spring and summer, terrestrial plant life drinks carbon dioxide in from the atmosphere and, combined with water and nutrients from the soil, grows. This is called carbon sequestration. But in the fall and winter, significant parts of that growth die off, and that carbon goes back into system. Another way that carbon recycles following the terrestrial growth process begins when the natural life of a plant ends. When a tree, for example, ultimately dies and begins to decompose, all of the carbon sequestered in its body begins the cyclic process of passing back into the environment. Fire can accelerate this, sending plumes of carbon-laden aerosols into the atmosphere, as well as leaving carbon-rich ash deposits on the ground for further decomposition and recycling. (6) Carbon And The Ocean - The Slow Cycle - The oceans are vast, and their processes as complex as their waters are deep. Phytoplankton absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and nutrient rich waters and grows in wide colonies called blooms. These blooms are highly dependent on surrounding environmental conditions. As phytoplankton grows, it forms the foundation for the food chain, thus passing carbon up to higher life forms. But just as on land, links in the ocean's chain of life also break, and stored carbon settles out of the top layers of water. A portion of it gets swept back to the surface as upwellings, only to begin again, but a major portion sinks to the bottom, becoming what oceanographers call "marine snow". This decomposing biological matter literally precipitates through the water and builds up on the ocean bottom, essentially sequestered from the rest of the Earth for geologically long periods of time. (7) Deep Water Feast: Upwellings Bring Nutrients To The Surface - Large phytoplankton blooms tend to coincide with natural phenomena that drive that nutrient rich water to the surface. The process is called upwelling. Here's what's happening: winds coming off principal land masses push surface layers of water away from the shore. Into the resulting wind-driven void deeper water underneath the surface layers rushes in toward the coast, bringing with it nutrients for life to bloom. It's different on the equator. There, water currents on either side of the hemispheric dividing line are generally moving in opposite directions again due to planetary rotation and the Coriolis effect. As those currents rush past each other they ostensibly "peel back" the surface of the ocean, creating a void for deeper water to rush in and take its place. (8) Spring Bloom In The North Atlantic - The annual bloom of phytoplankton in the North Atlantic is one of the biggest regular blooms in the world. The area covered is larger than the territory covered by the Amazon rainforest in South America. In the open waters of North Atlantic, it's believed that lots of carbon initially taken up by phytoplankton ultimately settles to the ocean floor, as the region is not densely populated by zooplankyton, the next logical rung on the food chain. (9) Western Central America - Along the West Coast of Central America we see extraordinary levels of phytoplankton growth, due largely to cold water upwellings along the eastern basin of the Pacific Ocean. This area rich in life supports a healthy and vibrant diversity of species, each with unique strategies for survival, but all ultimately dependent on the first link in the food chain. In human terms this has direct relevance to fishermen in the region, as the area is world famous for its significant tuna stocks. (10) Equatorial Atlantic - River Outlets Support Life - South America presents two excellent examples of river outlets where phytoplankton tend to thrive. Along the northern part of the continent the mouth of the Orinoco River opens into the Caribbean. Along the Eastern side of South America, the mighty Amazon exits its thousand mile journey. At the end of each, notice the bright red tails waving against the largely blue-green background of surrounding Atlantic ocean. That1s the signature of intense photosynthesis happening‹billions of phytoplankton making their home in those currents, feeding off carbon saturated foodstuffs and turning sunlight into energy for life. (11) A Splash of Color In The Pacific - The bloom associated with the 1997 to 1998 El Nino to La Nina transition event splashed across the Pacific Ocean like pigment thrown across empty canvas. Jetting from west to east, the explosive, yet short lived growth spurt there coincided with significant upwellings of cold water corresponding with the onset of La Nina. During the powerful 1997 El Nino event, SeaWiFS recorded little or no significant growth of phytoplankton in the equatorial Pacific. (12) Pulse Of The Planet - Explosion In The Galapagos - SeaWiFS images documented the rapid demise of El Nino in the waters around the Galapagos Islands. The images show a explosion in plankton growth as the warm El Nino waters blamed for choking off essential ocean nutrients are replaced by deep, cold waters. The false color images, which document plankton concentrations a period from May 9 - 24 1998, show that life in the region to the west archipelago returned in remarkable abundance. High concentrations are shown red. Areas blocked by clouds are shown in white. (13) SeaWiFS Around The Nation - Throughout the duration of the SeaWiFS project, affiliated researchers have produced a series of high-resolution images to help them better understand seasonal changes in ocean and land-based plant life in regions around the U.S. Each sequence begins with true color images from selected dates and transitions to computer-enhanced images which highlight plankton and sediment concentrations. The images focus on seventeen coastal regions around the U.S. including: Charleston area Miami region New Orleans and Gulf Coast (14) Fires Send Smoke East - While fires tormented authorities and residents across the western United States in late summer of 2000, evidence of the disaster1s immense scale floated across the country. In this SeaWiFS image taken August 15, 2000, heavy smoke and aerosols can be seen travelling as far East as the Great Lakes. The patches of amber that fade onto the screen show information collected by the space agency1s TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) instrument. The TOMS data shows that heavy smoke from the western blazes significantly raised ambient particulate concentrations more than a thousand miles from the fires themselves. (15) Dust In The Wind - A massive sandstorm blowing off the desert in northwest Africa blanketed hundreds of thousands of square miles over the eastern Atlantic Ocean with a dense cloud of particles. SeaWiFS first saw the nature of this particular storm on Saturday, February 26, 2000 when it had stretched more than 1000 miles out to sea. (16) Floods In Mozambique - Following weeks of heavy rains in late winter 2000, massive flooding inundated wide tracts of eastern and southern Africa, displacing more than 200,000 people. Torrential rain fell over immense areas. Vastly overflowing rivers sent much of that water rushing towards Mozambique. In the following SeaWiFS image of Cyclone Leon-Eline, taken February 23, notice the wide expanse of territory affected by the storm system. (17) SeaWiFS at The Olympic Games - During the Olympic Games in September, 2000, the SeaWiFS team captured a dramatic mosaic of Australian images. Stitched together, the pictures depict the Australian continent in vibrant color. It was across much of the land shown here that 11,000 runners carried the Olympic torch more than 17,000 miles, on a route that ultimately led to the lighting of the flame in Sydney's new stadium. This tour of Australia captures both inland features as well as dramatic oceanic hues from the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef.
ITEM (15): Greener Greenhouse [GSFC] - According to new research using advanced remote sensing systems there's evidence that plant life in the Northern Hemisphere may be growing more vigorously than in decades past. Growing season duration and intensity are both increasing, offering clues to changes in the planet's overall climate. (1) Changed Tied to Carbon - In North America, the growing season may have lengthened by as much as twelve days according to findings released this year. Signs point to changes in ambient carbon in the atmosphere, the principal source of nourishment for plant life. But warming temperatures may also be a source of increased growing time. Measurements taken by satellites and ground stations suggest that overall mean temperatures have been on the rise in the past several decades, possibly coaxing additional growth from green plants than in times past.
ITEM (16): Dust Inhibits Rainfall [GSFC] - Climate change results from more than just the effects of greenhouse gases. According to recent findings, a newly discovered climate change factor is the effect of dust on rainfall. Windblown dust can choke rain clouds, inhibiting rainfall. This reduction of precipitation can cause drier soil, which in turn raises more dust, thus providing a possible feedback loop to further decrease rainfall and exacerbate drought conditions. In addition to dust, it is known that both aerosols in smoke from biomass burning and urban pollution also inhibit rainfall production. Through their ability to suppress rainfall, each of these three elements could have a major effect on regional and global climate. (1) The Science of Rainfall Production - Normal rainfall droplet creation involves water vapor condensing on particles in clouds. The droplets eventually coalesce together to form drops large enough to fall to Earth. However, as more and more dust particles (aerosols) enter a rain cloud, the same amount of water becomes spread out. These smaller water droplets scatter and are prevented from coalescing and growing large enough for a raindrop. Thus, the cloud yields less rainfall over the course of its lifetime. This animation compares a normal rain producing cloud, (left) with the lack of rain produced from a cloud full of aerosols from biomass burning (right.) Credit: NASA (2) Global Precipitation Maps - This visualization highlights the global rainfall averages for a two and a half year period (from January 1998 to October 2000) on the swath of territory covered by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite. Credit: NASA/NASDA (3) Ozone Levels Over Indonesia - Between July and October of 1997 the tropospheric ozone (smog) levels rose in the Indian Ocean and around southeast Asia. As well, smog from biomass burning in Africa traveled across the ocean, combining with Indonesian smog to create a smog canopy over the region, with the highest levels found on October 22, 1997. The red denotes high concentrations of ozone and the green color indicates lower levels. Smoke from fires is seen in white. Credit: NASA
ITEM (17): Measuring Earth's Energy Budget Where The Ocean Meets The Sky [LaRC] - Sometimes the best way to gain understanding of a thing is to observe it from different perspectives. That's the principle behind a research mission conducted this year off the coast of Virginia. It's known as CLAMS-the Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites mission. The purpose is to compare measurements taken at the ground, at multiple altitudes in the atmosphere, and from space to help refine satellite measurements about aerosols and ocean characteristics, both vital for understanding how the Earth's climate works. (1) Advanced Aircraft Collect Data - CLAMS utilized multiple data collection systems simultaneously. By taking atmospheric measurements at the same time from different places in a vertical column, readings could be compared and validated. Some of the aircraft included in the study were NASA's OV-10, the high-altitude ER-2, a Convair 580, a Proteus, a Learjet, and a Cessna. (2) Researchers Synchronize Efforts (b-roll) - By using instruments located in the U.S. Coast Guard's Chesapeake lighthouse simultaneously with a fleet of airplanes and the Terra spacecraft, scientists are gaining insight into important aspects of global climate change.
ITEM (18): Testing The Air At The Eastern Edge Of The Pacific [LaRC] - Around the world all air is not the same. That's the motivation behind the TRACE-P experiment, conducted during the spring of 2001. Designed to study the composition of atmospheric gasses found off the Pacific coast of Asia, TRACE-P (for Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific) seeks to understand a number of factors, including how industrially produced gasses from Asia interact with sunlight differently than similar gasses produced in North American and Europe. (1) Low Pressure Systems Draws Pollutants Out To Sea - In this animation, we see how a low-pressure system that formed over Southeast Asia draws pollutants and aerosols out to sea. By studying the composition and density of these atmospheric contaminants, experts hope to gain a better understanding of the long terms effects humans have on the environment around the Pacific Rim. (2) Aircraft Gather Data In Situ - Using a variety of airborne and ground based instruments, the space agency and its partners collected data about the territory just off the eastern Pacific coast. NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center sent their DC-8 and their P-3B airplanes to participate. Instruments on board measured the concentration and makeup of various trace gasses, hence the project's moniker.
ITEM (19): Exploring Volcanos In Shirtsleeves [JPL] - One of the best and safest ways to study volcanoes is to analyze data about them somewhere else. However, getting that data has often put researchers not only in peril, but in the challenging position of solving the practical problems associated with its acquisition. Now a pair of instruments recently launched on NASA's flagship Earth observing satellite is helping vulcanologists not only get the information they need, but do so safely, and to a degree of accuracy never before possible. (1) A View Into The Center Of The Earth - Using the ASTER and MISR instruments flying onboard the Terra spacecraft, scientists can essentially look inside volcanos in ways they never could before. ASTER is ideal for studying surface temperature, radiation emissions, reflectance, and elevation. MISR is well suited for discerning aerosol composition and density, as well as delivering multi-angle views of a subject under scrutiny. (2) Lava Advancing To The Sea - Lava spewing from active volcanos have played major roles in shaping the Earth's surface. As the molten stone cools when it hits the air and water it finds above the Earth's crust, it alters the landscape. In this visualization, we see the relative progression of lava as it moved doen the Kamoamoa Flow Field on the face of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii. (3) Ring Of Fire - Volcanos appear on every continent around the globe. This animation helps illustrate just how widespread these geological cauldrons can be found. On the globe shown here, every red triangle represents an active volcano.

2001 EARTH SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES

Tape Title

Record ID

Date Produced

TRT:

Synopsis

EARTH SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS 2001: HIGH TECH FOR A THRIVING PLANET

G01-085

01/28/02

01:26:34

Research conducted through NASA's Earth Science Enterprise this past year might best be described as "the big picture". New types of remote sensing techniques blossomed in 2001 following years of careful preparation and cultivation. From first ever measurements of the global carbon cycle, to important new research into how aerosols affect the planet's temperature, to remarkable research describing how germs particles travel the globe as stowaways on microscopic grains of dust, the space agency collected data about our home that will shape scientific inquiries for year to come.One of the best and safest ways to study volcanoes is to analyze data about them somewhere else. However, getting that data has often put researchers not only in peril, but in the challenging position of solving the practical problems associated with its acquisition. Now a pair of instruments recently launched on NASA's flagship Earth observing satellite is helping vulcanologists not only get the information they need, but do so safely, and to a degree of accuracy never before possible.

TAPE CONTENTS:

ITEM (1): Measures Of Change (Reporter Package) - Same planet, different look. In 2001, NASA painted the Earth with a new pallet, affording researchers powerful insights into interconnections among various complex global systems. High above the southernmost continent, the Landsat and Radarsat spacecraft collected data that NASA researchers used to map changes in the Antarctic ice cap. By comparing images taken over time, experts developed remarkable moving maps that describe velocity and direction of glaciers to a degree never before achieved. Since the northern and southern ice caps play a major role in regulating the Earth's temperature, this new data about their most fundamental behavior is a major step in understanding large-scale climate issues. And the ice caps are dynamic places, too. In November of 2001 a gigantic 7 mile long slab of ice from the Pine Island Glacier caught the scientific community by surprise when it crashed into the ocean more than a year earlier than had been expected. But while changes in the ice offer clues to an evolving planet, changes in that planet's color describe the life that lives on it. Enter SeaWiFS, a low cost mission that this year paid off big. After three years of continuous data collection, the SeaWiFS team assembled a first ever snapshot of the Earth's carbon cycle on a global scale. By watching the ebb and flow of carbon as it's taken up by plant life in the oceans and on land, researchers are beginning to connect global biological trends to physical changes in the planet. In 2001, the Earth had a first of its kind medical assessment. In tandem with this measurement of the global heartbeat is evidence that plant growth on Earth is increasing due to warmer average temperatures. By comparing satellite images of vegetation and temperature over specific regions, researchers concluded that plant growth density and the growing season's average length are both increasing. But the study of climate and its relation to life depends on our ability to sight locations on the globe. This year NASA sighted the globe like never before. Using data collected by a suite of satellites, the space agency fused images of different places into seamless zooms. As we pull back from the Earth in a way that highlights gradual change in perspective, we come to see our home as not merely a collection of different places, but one unbroken sphere, all points fully interconnected.

ITEM (2): State Of The Art Applied: Earth Science At Work (Reporters Package) - Oenology is the study of wine making. So why, then, are some of California's best oenologists suddenly interested in remote sensing? Aficionados know that it isn't enough just to grow grapes. Subtleties in soil chemistry, weather, moisture, and many other factors can have significant impacts on a vintage. That's where remote sensing comes in. By using new techniques to monitor complex growing conditions in terms of a few meters instead of an entire vineyard, California's multi-million dollar wine industry can uncork yield and flavor potentials to new degrees of precision. Remote sensing technology is advancing rapidly. Take the Altus II, a new, pilotless airplane that fuses internet connectivity with advanced data collection capabilities. In tests this year, the Altus II demonstrated how fire managers could keep track of dangerous wildfires without having to risk the safety of personnel. Operated by remote control, the airplane collected visible and invisible infrared data from hot spots and transmitted them to data processing centers via satellite. Including data collection, transfer, image refinement, and distribution to people in charge, the total time to get information is less than fifteen minutes. So: grape growing and pilotless planes. What's the connection? Try precision farming. Using the latest in global positioning system technology, NASA experts are helping to develop agriculture systems that can operate within precise parameters without need of human hands on the controls. By fusing remote sensing data with advanced driverless machines, GPS navigation will help growers manage farms of the future.

ITEM (3): Frozen But Not Immobile: Antarctica In Motion [GSFC] - Antarctica is a dynamic and changing continent. Recent mapping missions from multiple satellites, including Landsat 7 and Canada's Radarsat-1, have studied the continent extensively and discovered several new features which highlight the evolution of the continent as ice cracks, shifts, flows and melts. From the formation of a new iceberg, to the break-up of an ice shelf, Antarctica is more than just a land frozen in time.

Faster Than A Speeding Glacier - It's not that fast, actually. But in terms of moving surface features over land, the Lambert Glacier is one fast mass of ice. Using a technique known as interferometry, researchers using the Radarsat spacecraft measured velocity and direction parameters for ice there. More than 500 kilometers (about 311 miles) long, when the Lambert Glacier reaches the adjoining Amery Ice Shelf it can be moving at more than one kilometer (two-thirds of a mile) per year. CREDIT: NASA/CSA

(2) The Amery Ice Shelf - At the mouth of the Lambert Glacier spreads the Amery Ice Shelf. While ice shelves mostly grow from glaciers pushing down towards the sea they also grow from precipitation. Ice shelves respond to climate change faster than sheets of ice on the ground or continental glaciers. Of particular interest is whether observed changes in various ice shelves are the result of natural processes or are anthropogenic--that is, the result of actions taken by humans. CREDIT: NASA/CSA/OSU

(3) Ronne Ice Shelf - The Ronne Ice Shelf grows primarily due to a constant flow from inland ice sheets. Where shearing stresses are greater than the strength of the ice itself, cracks form. These cracks ultimately widen and spread like varicose veins in the frozen skin of the coast, only to break loose and become icebergs. Early in the 1990's a slab of ice the size of Delaware broke free from this

(4) Fimbul Ice Shelf -,Icebergs form when hunks of ice break away from glaciers pushing into the ocean. Ice shelves are the edges of those glaciers, extending out into the ocean faster than ice bergs can break off from the edge. The Fimbul Ice Shelf has remained relatively consistent in its appearance for the last thirty years, but researchers are paying close attention to changes. Ice shelves are considered to be particularly sensitive to climatic changes and scientists have detected a marked retreat of several along the Antarctic Peninsula. CREDIT: NASA/CSA/OSU

(5) Larsen Ice Shelf - In 1978, scientists predicted that global warming would lead to a disintegration of Antarctic Peninsula ice shelves. Spaceborne data indicate that this prediction may be coming true. In these before and after images, note the dramatic change in the apparent shoreline. Scientists captured the first image in using the ERS-1 satellite in 1992. In the second image, collected by Radarsat in 1997, huge changes have come to the coastline.

THE SKY

ITEM (4): Slow Motion Crumble: The Larsen Ice Shelf Breaks Up [GSFC] - Most people regard the desolate expanses of polar ice as practically unchanging and imperturbable, poetically bookending the rest of our vibrant, blue-green world. Not so, says a new study. According to a paper released in the latest issue of the Journal of Glaciology, major stretches of Antarctica's Larsen Ice Shelf literally collapsed into floating splinters as several recent warmer than normal summers took their toll. The research adds strong evidence to the case that climate change can have a significant impact on the condition of the Earth's polar caps, which in turn can play a major role in changes to wider planetary climate and environmental conditions.

(1) Before And After The Larsen Ice Shelf is one of several so-called ice shelves in Antarctica. Although not the largest, experts consider it to be most in jeopardy of further recession due to its comparatively northern position. In this sequence, we see how the ice there has changed through time, starting in December 1993 and ending in March 2000. These images are the product of NOAA's AVHRR instrument, (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer), flying aboard that agency''s POES (Polar Orbiting Environmental Spacecraft) satellite.

Image dates are the following:

December 26, 1993

February 13, 1995

March 21, 1998

November 21, 1998

March 2, 2000

(2) A Process Of Change: What Happened To Shatter The Ice - As melting water on the surface of an ice shelf fills in fissures and crevasses, pressure builds in the structure of the sheet. That process can either increase gradually, or it can be repeated seasonally, with melting and re-freezing forcing the split to widen. What can happen is either a major break due to specific forces from the water wedge, or a gradual weakening of a wide section of shelf, ultimately rent asunder by tides or storms. The process is believed to be more a function of mean summertime temperatures, as opposed to overall annual temperatures.

ITEM (5): Monitoring Ice From Space [GSFC] - Remote sensing techniques provide an excellent way to measure changes in glaciers over time. The Landsat satellite series has captured the recession of a glacier on Iceland's largest ice cap over almost a 30 year time period. The Breidamerkurjökull (brathe-a-mer-ker-yokull,) an outlet glacier on the Vatnajökull (vat-na-yokull) ice cap, has receded by as much as 2 km since 1973. Though ground measurements continue to be taken and are generally more accurate, the Landsat images can provide coverage and fill in gaps where ground measurements cannot be conducted.

(1) Change At Breidamerkurjökull Iceland, 1973-2000 - Images taken by Landsat 1 on September 22, 1973 and Landsat 7 on September 23, 2000 show the almost two kilometer (1.2 mile) recession of the Breidamerkurjökull over the 27 year period. You can see the creation of icebergs in the lake in front of the glacier. In these scenes, bare glacier ice surfaces appear bluish-white, while those covered in snow are bright white. Water surfaces are dark blue and land surfaces appear reddish. Credit: NASA/USGS

(2) More Change: Breidamerkurjökull 1997-2000 - A closer-in view of the Breidamerkurjökull shows the changes over a three year time period, between 1997 and 2000 (Landsat 5 on August 13, 1997, to September 23, 2000 from Landsat 7). The endpoint, or terminus, of the glacier shows the most obvious change. Credit: NASA/USGS

ITEM (6): Missing Lake: The Dissappearance Of Lake Chad [GSFC] - When it thrived, Lake Chad was one of those ironic points of planetary formation in that it seemed to defy the vast ocean of sand directly to its north. Persistent drought has caused the lake to drop from its former sixth place position in the list of world's largest lakes; it is now one tenth it's former size. This Landsat time series can not only help quantify the changes there, but can help researchers evaluate the root causes for such large transformation events on Earth, from climate change to human use of natural resources.

(1) Fifteen Years Of A Shrinking Lake - The most dramatic decrease in the size of the lake is shown in the fifteen years between January 1973 and January 1987. Beginning in 1983 the amount of water used for irrigation began to increase. Ultimately, between 1983 and 1994, the amount of water diverted for purposes of irrigation quadrupled from the amount used in the previous 25 years. The red color denotes vegetation on the lakebed and the ripples on the western edge of the lake denote sand dunes formed by the wind. Credit: NASA/USGS

(2) Lake Chad Today - In this composite of Landsat-7 images from November 2000 to February 2001 we see Lake Chad as it appears today. The small patch of visible blue that is now the lake stands in stark contrast to the wide swath of the old lakebed (shown in green, indicating vegetation.) Credit: NASA/USGS

ITEM (7): Bits Of Dust Carry Microbes Across The Sea [GSFC] - Compared to past centuries, travel around the globe has never been easier for millions. But new research supported by NASA shows that global travel is not just for homo sapiens. Tiny forms of microscopic life can "hitch a ride" across vast stretches of ocean by adhering to bits of dust caught in the wind. Experts believe that these travelers can not only help explain certain biological events such as sicknesses in some Caribbean coral populations, but also point to a need for responsible oversight of regions where much of the dust originates. Evidence about this kind of dust and microbial particle transport emphasizes a global need to keep better track of biological and chemical contaminants.

(1) Microbes Ride The Dust - During the dry season in North Africa, storms in the Sahara Desert and the nearby Sahel kick up vast clouds of dust. Starting as fine particles in the arid topsoil, it's transported into the atmosphere by winds and may be carried as high as 10,000 feet where it gets picked up by easterly trade winds. Typically it takes 5 to 7 days for the dust clouds to cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach The Caribbean and The Americas. In this animation we see a depiction of how microbes might "hitch a ride" inside the irregular nooks and crannies found on the surfaces of dust particles. Once safely ensconced, they travel across the ocean. CREDIT: NASA.

(2) Dust Images From Around The World - According to recent studies, thick dust concentrations and its ability to reach high altitudes is the cause of decreased rainfall, not the result as it is sometimes erroneously believed. The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) on board the Orb View-2 Satellite captured these images of dust storms around the globe.

1) Shown as a mass of high altitude dust off the northwestern coast of Africa on February, 26th 2000, this storm is roughly the size of Spain

2) These images show two dust events around the Mediterranean Sea. All three continents bordering the Mediterranean are subject to the effects of dust storms.

a) July 18th 2000 from north Africa towards Italy

b) April 18th 2001 northward from Egypt

3) This image shows a wide region of the Middle East covered by dust. SeaWiFS acquired the data for this picture on May 20th 1999.

Credit: NASA/ORBIMAGE

(3) African Dust Causes Algae Blooms - Each year clouds of Saharan dust deposit iron into the waters off the West Florida coast. Once there, plant-like bacteria use the iron to set the stage for red tides. When iron levels rise, these bacteria called Trichodesmium fix nitrogen in the water, converting it to a form usable by other marine life. However the addition of biologically usable nitrogen in the water also makes the Gulf of Mexico a more likely environment for toxic algae to bloom. These two images of Florida taken by NASA's Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) on board the Orb View-2 Satellite from Feb. 25, 1998 & Oct. 30, 1998, show phytoplankton blooms (green). Sometimes blooms like the ones shown create conditions favorable for red tides. Credit: NASA/ORBIMAGE

(4) Saharan Dust Moving Across Atlantic - Research using satellites to monitor dust arrivals and Trichodesmium blooms could lead to forecasting of red tides. These two visualizations use data from NASA's Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) satellite instrument show storm activity in the Sahara Desert region generating clouds of dust. Easterly trade winds carry the dust across the Atlantic Ocean and into the Gulf of Mexico. The TOMS data were rendered and combined with a world map to help scientists track the progress of the clouds of dust. The tan and orange colors in these images primarily show high concentrations of dust. Some aerosols from biomass burning can also be seen.

a) TOMS July 2000 Aerosol Index

ITEM (8): Aerial Fire And Disaster Monitoring Without A Pilot [ARC] - Firefighting managers often confront the dilemma of allocating precious resources to combat forest fires while minimizing risk to their personnel. Now a new, experimental vehicle is being put through its paces so that it might take the place of people in harm's way.

(1) Uninhabitated, But Not Without A Brain - Called the Altus II, this uninhabited aerial vehicle (UAV) carries an extensive array of communications and data collection gear. But it doesn't carry a pilot. Navigation takes place via remote control from safe locations miles away. Data collected by the instruments on board get beamed to the InMarsat satellite, and then downlinked for image processing. Maps generated from the data can be delivered to fire managers in as little as fifteen minutes following acquisition.

(2) Internet In The Air - The system offers certain advantages over traditional fire spotting plans with human crews. Instead of having to bring a crew back to an airport where imagery collected in flight can be processed and analyzed, the Altus II transmits the data back almost immediately. Plus, flying at a relatively low altitude of 10,000 to 15,000 feet, instruments onboard the aircraft can both pinpoint small scale regions as well as take in wider regions for geographic context.

ITEM (9): Color, Bouquet, Infrared Absorption: Making Wine With The Help Of NASA Spacecraft [ARC] - Measurements taken from several NASA satellites and aircraft are being put to work in the creation of California wines. By measuring growing area features like light levels, water availability, chlorophyll, and more, vintners are learning how to maximize their acreage and avoid problems in their cultivation plans.

(1) Ground Validation And A Little Fermentation - In Napa Valley California, grape growers with the Robert Mondavi winery are using remote sensing data to manage micro-regions of their vineyards. This precision agriculture is facilitating maximized yields on grapes, plus offering experts the ability to make subtle changes in their mixes. For researchers studying remote sensing techniques, the arrangement works well, too. As a commercial partnership, the space agency gets the benefit of ground validation of its measurements--a built in advantage to developing next generation remote sensing techniques.

ITEM (10): Farming By Remote Control [JPL] - They call it precision farming. By using remote sensing technology developed by NASA, farmers are beginning to develop new techniques for managing their crops and maximizing yields. A combination of data analysis and global positioning systems may even allow some farmers to leave their tractors in the care of sophisticated computer programs, designed to drive the machines without a driver.

(1) Driving Lessons - Using software developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and data from the Global Positioning System network, farmers can tap in to a wealth of highly information about their fields. By working in collaboration with a private company called NavCom, valuable information about soil, moisture, and a raft of other criteria can be measured to within 10 centimeters and reach tractors and their drivers at work on the back forty.

(2) Farm Machines At Work - A variety of new technologies are changing the way modern agriculture operates. Not only are new levels of accuracy in data acquisition starting to come on line, but remotely operated farm machinery may some day soon alleviate the long days of driving for many who make their livings working the land.

ITEM (11): Getting Closer: Zooming In To Earth [GSFC] - A trio of Earth observing satellites--NASA's eyes in the skies--brings you these spectacular views of city life in America. Visualizers at the Goddard Space Flight Center developed these "great zooms" using some powerful computer technology and data from the satellites Terra, Landsat 7, the commercial platform called IKONOS. Starting with our camera high above the Earth, we rush in toward the surface at what would be an impossible speed for any known vehicle. The images these satellites provide are more than just pretty pictures, though. They give scientists the data they need to study the biology of our planet, from aerosol levels in the air to farmland distribution on the ground to plankton growth in our oceans.

(1) This Planet Earth: Great Zooms From Space: American Cities - No doubt about it: these are new. Using data from different spacecraft and some powerful computer technology, visualizers at the Goddard Space Flight Center present you with the following collection of American cities in a way you've never seen them before. Starting with our camera high above the Earth, we rush in towards the surface at what would be an impossible speed for any known vehicle. Enjoy the ride!

Featured Cities Include:

Washington, DC

Atlanta, GA

Los Angeles, CA

San Francisco, CA

Orlando, FL

Chicago, IL

Tucson, AZ

(2) Zooms From Space: How Did They Do That? - There's no Earth observing telescope parked in orbit. There are no geosynchronous elevators on which a camera can be mounted. The images that went into each of the remarkable city zooms come from data collected by a group of Earth imaging satellites. By taking data sets from different satellites that each show the Earth at various spatial levels, a sequence of images was electronically knitted together. Computer experts used images from MODIS, Landsat 7, and a remarkable commercial satellite called Ikonos to create these zooms. In virtual space the viewer travels far more than a thousand miles, but in real terms, nothing besides electrons, photons, and an elite group of computer and spacecraft personnel have moved to make these images possible.

(3) The Desert Blooming: Urban Growth In Las Vegas - Las Vegas is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. Over a period of 27 years, a series of Landsat satellites has taken pictures of Las Vegas from space. Seen in sequence, the series vividly displays powerful forces of urban growth there. Spreading out from the center of town, we see how construction and its effects has changed the nature of the surrounding area, replacing natural features in many parts, and simply altering characteristics in others.

(4) Mt. St. Helens Over Time - The explosion of Mt. St. Helens volcano in Washington State on May 18, 1980 sets the scene for one of Landsat's most important capabilities. As a means for archiving surface features, researchers can study how the Earth changes over time. In this sequence, pictures of the mountain taken in 1973, 1983, and 2000 show how the eruption changed the surrounding area. Notice how the north face of the mountain dramatically changed following the blast. The crater's mouth elongated, and significant ash deposits altered the down slope terrain.

(5) Circling The Crater: Aster Sees Mt. St. Helens - Taken on August 8, 2000, the sequence shows a virtual fly-around of Mt. St. Helens volcano in Washington State. A part of the Cascade Range of mountains, Mt. St. Helens began to wake from more than a hundred years of slumber in the beginning of 1980. When it ultimately erupted on May 18 of that year, the energy released actually caused the disintegration of the mountain's top. Computer experts enhanced the visualization's to reflect a more familiar look of a wooded area. ASTER data taken in the visible and near infrared parts of the spectrum were draped over a digital topographic model, itself created by the 3-D stereo imaging capabilities of the instrument. The vertical relief of the image has been exaggerated by a factor of two to enhance the surface features.

(6) Case Study: El Reno, Oklahoma - At different levels of resolution, with different types of data available, Terra can show regions of the Earth in comparative terms. By those comparisons, experts can assess what present conditions are on the ground to a highly accurate degree, as well as recognize how a given region is changing over time, or changing in relation to surrounding regions. This sequence of ASTER data showing El Reno, Oklahoma is a good example.

(7) A Thickness of Sky - On the left we see a stripe of ground running across the border between Idaho and Montana. This scene comes from the MISR instrument on Terra. As the image scrolls down, we see tendrils of smoke drifting up from fires burning. On the right side of the screen we see a corresponding image showing data about the atmosphere above the region. The data displayed is a visual representation of what's called "aerosol optical thickness", a measurement of the amount of light absorbed by the smoke and haze in the atmosphere.

(8) Fire Signatures In Idaho - Not only can ASTER zoom in close to a subject on the ground, but it can also assess its thermal characteristics. This can provide useful information for officials on the ground in dealing with fires, volcanos, and other natural events. Here we see ASTER data of fires that happened last summer in Idaho. The scene first shows the area of the fires, zooms in for a closer look, then shows a thermal signal indicating hot spots on the ground.

(9) Nine Eyes On Montana Fires - MISR is a single instrument on Terra composed of nine different cameras. By using images from those cameras either in combination, alone, or in sequence, sophisticated information can be gleaned. Here we see a still picture of the fire region in Montana. We see haze over the area as smoke drifts high into the atmosphere. As MISR's nine cameras cycle through the scene, the change in perspective allows us not only to see different angles of the ground and the particles of clouds themselves, but also to measure cloud height.

(10) Catching The Light In The Cracks - MISR's nine cameras are useful for surface measurements, too. On the Pine Island glacier in Antarctica, a large crack has recently appeared. In very little time last year, the crack spread more than 25 kilometers (15 miles) across the glacier. The value of a space-based perspective is the ability to take in a wide area. With MISR, detailed analysis of this particular surface feature can be studied across the entire length of the fissure. By using images taken by the forward, nadir, and aft cameras, we can see differences in reflectance in the crack very clearly. This helps scientists track the crack as it grows as well as better understand the forces that led to its formation.

(11) Mozambique Flooding - Following weeks of heavy rains in late Winter 2000, massive flooding inundated wide tracts of eastern and southern Africa, displacing more than 200,000 people. This side by side Landsat sequence shows the comparative size of rivers in Mozambique before and during the floods. Notice how the high waters have all but covered the lowlands, far exceeding the boundaries of the normal river system.

(12) Mozambique Flooding Compared To Size Of Washington DC - This sequence shows the scale of the tragic floods that washed through Mozambique in 2000. As the visualization begins, we see the relative size of Washington, DC, shown in red, superimposed over the flood area. In this case, remote Earth imagery becomes useful as a tool for communication, allowing accurate and clear description of the scale of a particular natural event.

(13) Losing Forests In Bolivia - This scene starts in space, high above South America. As we zoom in closer, we see the national outlines of Bolivia come into view on the map. By focusing on one particular region, we're able to see effects of deforestation in the equatorial forest. The sequence that follows shows two images of the Santa Cruz region of Bolivia. The first was taken in 1984. Landsat 7 took the second in 2000. In just a few short years, we see how intense agricultural development has transformed the forest.

(14) Trees Falling: Mapping Deforestation In Rondonia, Brazil - Data gathered over time by several in the Landsat series of spacecraft shows enormous tracts of forest disappearing in Rondonia, Brazil. This territory underwent an enormous rise in population towards the end of the twentieth century, buoyed by cheap land offered by the national government for agricultural use. It's useful to note how the human phenomenon of deforestation generally works, especially in the dense tropical forests of Brazil. Systematic cutting of a road opens new territory to potential deforestation by penetrating into new areas. Clearing of vegetation along the sides of those roads tends to fan out to create a pattern akin to a fish skeleton. As new paths appear in the woods, new areas become vulnerable. The spaces between the "skeletal bones" fall to defoliation, and another inch of the Earth's biological rudder is no longer reliably steering the planet into the future.

ITEM (12): Changes In The Air--Hawaiian Islands Alter Wind Currents [JPL] - The ocean and the atmosphere do not simply share a boundary. They interact in complex ways just now being explored by advanced spacecraft and computing systems. Around the islands of Hawaii, researchers have found a dramatic example of this relationship in the form of the world's longest wind wake. The peaks of the comparatively high landmasses surrounded by ocean interrupt trans-Pacific winds moving through the islands of the 50th state.

(1) Diverting A River Of Air - Here we see Pacific winds intersecting the Hawaiian archipelago. As they pass among the islands their trajectories and velocities are altered, causing the world's largest wake. Research like this could never be done before the successful deployment of advanced space-based remote sensing systems like QuikSCAT.

(2) Earth Systems Interacting - Scientists are learning more about how major planetary systems interact by studying this unique phenomenon. Research like this might help explain how the atmosphere and the ocean affect in mutually reactive ways. On a different note, this research also has implications for a discipline not usually in the purview of NASA, namely anthropology. It is possible that ocean currents now understood to be tied directly to the Hawaiian Islands might have helped early travelers navigate the vast distances of the Pacific, offering clues to early human migration.

(3) Visible Wind: The Quickscat Satellite - QuikSCAT is the name of a satellite with one instrument on board, called SeaWinds. SeaWinds measures near-surface wind speed and direction regardless of weather at the planet's surface. It uses a specialized microwave radar designed specifically for the task.

ITEM (13): Echos From The Blast: Ten Years After Mt. Pinatubo [GSFC] - June 15, 2001 marked the tenth anniversary of the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, one of the most destructive volcanic events of the last century. Found on the Bataan Peninsula on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, the volcano had been dormant for 500 years when clouds of sulfur dioxide and tons of ash blasted skyward from its central crater. Ultimately, over 600 people died in the explosion and its aftermath. In addition to the devastation on the ground, the eruption had far reaching effects on the global atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide and dust ejected into the stratosphere affected both global temperature and Earth's protective layer of ozone for years.

(1) Landsat Looks At Mt. Pinatubo - This recent false color Landsat-7 image, from January 2001, shows Mt. Pinatubo as it stands today. The caldera is seen in the middle of the image, underneath clouds. Ten years after the blast, vegetation is re-growing on the slopes of the mountain (in green.) Streams of mud, called lahars, (resulting from ash from the eruption mixing with water- seen as the lighter sediment) continue to flow down the sides of the mountains, as well as channels of water (darker streams). However, as vegetation grows back, the ash becomes more stabilized and less likely to form the destructive lahars. Credit: NASA/USGS/University of Hawaii

(2) Sulfur Dioxide After The Eruption - The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo blasted a huge cloud of sulfur dioxide, shown in red, into the stratosphere. This data taken from NASA's Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) instrument shows that initial burst of sulfur dioxide and its international path in the days following the eruption, from June 16th to June 30th. The sulfur gas cloud dissipates as the gas turns into droplets of sulfuric acid. Both the gas and subsequent acid were contributors to the overall dust cloud that cooled the global climate. Credit: NASA.

(3) Decrease In The Ozone Levels - During the year and a half after the eruption, global stratospheric ozone levels decreased as a result of chemical reactions with the ozone and the sulfur dioxide gases released by the volcano. However, the initial effect of the injection of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere was so strong, that a small hole was created in the ozone layer, (from June 15th, 1991 through June 30, 1991) as seen here, in blue, using TOMS data. This visualization shows global ozone levels before and after the eruption. After the hole dissipates, continued low levels of ozone, in very light blue, can be seen around the tropics. Credit: NASA

THE CARBON CYCLE

ITEM (14): The Colors Of Life: Seawifs Captures Three Years Of The Carbon Cycle [GSFC] - Everything about life on Earth depends on life in the ocean. After all, this is a blue planet, with about 70 percent of the total surface awash with one of the most common molecular compounds known: water. The oceans regulate the planet's biological wellbeing. But water alone is not enough. Life in its most common forms demands a ready supply of a particular element if it's to thrive: carbon. It's the same stuff that composes lowly coal, and it's the core of proud tree trunks. Carbon is the root of all life on Earth, and as it's complex dance carries it through the biosphere, the Earth's state of health responds.

(1) Think Small: Phytoplankton And The Carbon Cycle's Foundation - The ocean is filled with life. One of the most important varieties found there is the most humble: phytoplankton. They're tiny, single celled plant organisms that form the root of the oceanic food chain. For years, researchers have only been able to study phytoplankton in discrete areas and synthesize a variety of suppositions about how it interacts with the natural world But a global look at these miniscule plants has not been possible. Until now.

(2) Colorful Shadows: Inferring Carbon's Cycle - Following three years of continual data collected by the SeaWiFS instrument, NASA has gathered the first record of photosynthetic productivity in the oceans. A measurement of photosynthesis is essentially a measurement of successful growth, and growth means successful use of ambient carbon. The process begins with a measurement of surface chlorophyll concentration. Chlorophyll is the material that allows plant cells to convert sunlight into energy, thus enabling them to grow. Healthy color signatures indicate the successful use of carbon, The fundamental building block for life. In other words, lots of green indicates lots of chlorophyll; lots of chlorophyll implies healthy photosynthesis; strong photosynthesis indicates growth, and growth indicates successful use of carbon.

(3) Water Planet: Living Planet - NASA designed SeaWiFS to study ocean processes. But the mission has surpassed its initial design goals. By carefully calibrating the sensor, experts have been able to use SeaWiFS data to monitor life on land, too. The project has noticed an increase in plant productivity on land in the past three years. Scientists believe the increased productivity is tied to increased rainfall averages connected to the most recent El Nino phenomena.

(4) The Carbon Record, Past And Present - Here we see a graph showing ambient atmospheric carbon going back roughly a thousand years. Since 1958, researchers working at a field station near the Mauna Loa caldera in Hawaii have collected data about ambient carbon dioxide levels once an hour. Their findings, daily averages constituting the longest continuous record of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the world, are powerful. Since they began tracking it, the record of ambient atmospheric carbon dioxide shows a steady increase, year after year. The data shows an annual pulse with respect to the presence of carbon, coinciding with seasonal variations. That pulse not only marks the heartbeat of the cycle, but also gives researchers a point of reference for future study into how the cycle may be changing.

(5) Carbon And The Land - The Fast Cycle - During the spring and summer, terrestrial plant life drinks carbon dioxide in from the atmosphere and, combined with water and nutrients from the soil, grows. This is called carbon sequestration. But in the fall and winter, significant parts of that growth die off, and that carbon goes back into system. Another way that carbon recycles following the terrestrial growth process begins when the natural life of a plant ends. When a tree, for example, ultimately dies and begins to decompose, all of the carbon sequestered in its body begins the cyclic process of passing back into the environment. Fire can accelerate this, sending plumes of carbon-laden aerosols into the atmosphere, as well as leaving carbon-rich ash deposits on the ground for further decomposition and recycling.

(6) Carbon And The Ocean - The Slow Cycle - The oceans are vast, and their processes as complex as their waters are deep. Phytoplankton absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and nutrient rich waters and grows in wide colonies called blooms. These blooms are highly dependent on surrounding environmental conditions. As phytoplankton grows, it forms the foundation for the food chain, thus passing carbon up to higher life forms. But just as on land, links in the ocean's chain of life also break, and stored carbon settles out of the top layers of water. A portion of it gets swept back to the surface as upwellings, only to begin again, but a major portion sinks to the bottom, becoming what oceanographers call "marine snow". This decomposing biological matter literally precipitates through the water and builds up on the ocean bottom, essentially sequestered from the rest of the Earth for geologically long periods of time.

(7) Deep Water Feast: Upwellings Bring Nutrients To The Surface - Large phytoplankton blooms tend to coincide with natural phenomena that drive that nutrient rich water to the surface. The process is called upwelling. Here's what's happening: winds coming off principal land masses push surface layers of water away from the shore. Into the resulting wind-driven void deeper water underneath the surface layers rushes in toward the coast, bringing with it nutrients for life to bloom. It's different on the equator. There, water currents on either side of the hemispheric dividing line are generally moving in opposite directions again due to planetary rotation and the Coriolis effect. As those currents rush past each other they ostensibly "peel back" the surface of the ocean, creating a void for deeper water to rush in and take its place.

(8) Spring Bloom In The North Atlantic - The annual bloom of phytoplankton in the North Atlantic is one of the biggest regular blooms in the world. The area covered is larger than the territory covered by the Amazon rainforest in South America. In the open waters of North Atlantic, it's believed that lots of carbon initially taken up by phytoplankton ultimately settles to the ocean floor, as the region is not densely populated by zooplankyton, the next logical rung on the food chain.

(9) Western Central America - Along the West Coast of Central America we see extraordinary levels of phytoplankton growth, due largely to cold water upwellings along the eastern basin of the Pacific Ocean. This area rich in life supports a healthy and vibrant diversity of species, each with unique strategies for survival, but all ultimately dependent on the first link in the food chain. In human terms this has direct relevance to fishermen in the region, as the area is world famous for its significant tuna stocks.

(10) Equatorial Atlantic - River Outlets Support Life - South America presents two excellent examples of river outlets where phytoplankton tend to thrive. Along the northern part of the continent the mouth of the Orinoco River opens into the Caribbean. Along the Eastern side of South America, the mighty Amazon exits its thousand mile journey. At the end of each, notice the bright red tails waving against the largely blue-green background of surrounding Atlantic ocean. That1s the signature of intense photosynthesis happening‹billions of phytoplankton making their home in those currents, feeding off carbon saturated foodstuffs and turning sunlight into energy for life.

(11) A Splash of Color In The Pacific - The bloom associated with the 1997 to 1998 El Nino to La Nina transition event splashed across the Pacific Ocean like pigment thrown across empty canvas. Jetting from west to east, the explosive, yet short lived growth spurt there coincided with significant upwellings of cold water corresponding with the onset of La Nina. During the powerful 1997 El Nino event, SeaWiFS recorded little or no significant growth of phytoplankton in the equatorial Pacific.

(12) Pulse Of The Planet - Explosion In The Galapagos - SeaWiFS images documented the rapid demise of El Nino in the waters around the Galapagos Islands. The images show a explosion in plankton growth as the warm El Nino waters blamed for choking off essential ocean nutrients are replaced by deep, cold waters. The false color images, which document plankton concentrations a period from May 9 - 24 1998, show that life in the region to the west archipelago returned in remarkable abundance. High concentrations are shown red. Areas blocked by clouds are shown in white.

(13) SeaWiFS Around The Nation - Throughout the duration of the SeaWiFS project, affiliated researchers have produced a series of high-resolution images to help them better understand seasonal changes in ocean and land-based plant life in regions around the U.S. Each sequence begins with true color images from selected dates and transitions to computer-enhanced images which highlight plankton and sediment concentrations. The images focus on seventeen coastal regions around the U.S. including:

Charleston area

Miami region

New Orleans and Gulf Coast

(14) Fires Send Smoke East - While fires tormented authorities and residents across the western United States in late summer of 2000, evidence of the disaster1s immense scale floated across the country. In this SeaWiFS image taken August 15, 2000, heavy smoke and aerosols can be seen travelling as far East as the Great Lakes. The patches of amber that fade onto the screen show information collected by the space agency1s TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) instrument. The TOMS data shows that heavy smoke from the western blazes significantly raised ambient particulate concentrations more than a thousand miles from the fires themselves.

(15) Dust In The Wind - A massive sandstorm blowing off the desert in northwest Africa blanketed hundreds of thousands of square miles over the eastern Atlantic Ocean with a dense cloud of particles. SeaWiFS first saw the nature of this particular storm on Saturday, February 26, 2000 when it had stretched more than 1000 miles out to sea.

(16) Floods In Mozambique - Following weeks of heavy rains in late winter 2000, massive flooding inundated wide tracts of eastern and southern Africa, displacing more than 200,000 people. Torrential rain fell over immense areas. Vastly overflowing rivers sent much of that water rushing towards Mozambique. In the following SeaWiFS image of Cyclone Leon-Eline, taken February 23, notice the wide expanse of territory affected by the storm system.

(17) SeaWiFS at The Olympic Games - During the Olympic Games in September, 2000, the SeaWiFS team captured a dramatic mosaic of Australian images. Stitched together, the pictures depict the Australian continent in vibrant color. It was across much of the land shown here that 11,000 runners carried the Olympic torch more than 17,000 miles, on a route that ultimately led to the lighting of the flame in Sydney's new stadium. This tour of Australia captures both inland features as well as dramatic oceanic hues from the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef.

ITEM (15): Greener Greenhouse [GSFC] - According to new research using advanced remote sensing systems there's evidence that plant life in the Northern Hemisphere may be growing more vigorously than in decades past. Growing season duration and intensity are both increasing, offering clues to changes in the planet's overall climate.

(1) Changed Tied to Carbon - In North America, the growing season may have lengthened by as much as twelve days according to findings released this year. Signs point to changes in ambient carbon in the atmosphere, the principal source of nourishment for plant life. But warming temperatures may also be a source of increased growing time. Measurements taken by satellites and ground stations suggest that overall mean temperatures have been on the rise in the past several decades, possibly coaxing additional growth from green plants than in times past.

ITEM (16): Dust Inhibits Rainfall [GSFC] - Climate change results from more than just the effects of greenhouse gases. According to recent findings, a newly discovered climate change factor is the effect of dust on rainfall. Windblown dust can choke rain clouds, inhibiting rainfall. This reduction of precipitation can cause drier soil, which in turn raises more dust, thus providing a possible feedback loop to further decrease rainfall and exacerbate drought conditions. In addition to dust, it is known that both aerosols in smoke from biomass burning and urban pollution also inhibit rainfall production. Through their ability to suppress rainfall, each of these three elements could have a major effect on regional and global climate.

(1) The Science of Rainfall Production - Normal rainfall droplet creation involves water vapor condensing on particles in clouds. The droplets eventually coalesce together to form drops large enough to fall to Earth. However, as more and more dust particles (aerosols) enter a rain cloud, the same amount of water becomes spread out. These smaller water droplets scatter and are prevented from coalescing and growing large enough for a raindrop. Thus, the cloud yields less rainfall over the course of its lifetime. This animation compares a normal rain producing cloud, (left) with the lack of rain produced from a cloud full of aerosols from biomass burning (right.) Credit: NASA

(2) Global Precipitation Maps - This visualization highlights the global rainfall averages for a two and a half year period (from January 1998 to October 2000) on the swath of territory covered by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite. Credit: NASA/NASDA

(3) Ozone Levels Over Indonesia - Between July and October of 1997 the tropospheric ozone (smog) levels rose in the Indian Ocean and around southeast Asia. As well, smog from biomass burning in Africa traveled across the ocean, combining with Indonesian smog to create a smog canopy over the region, with the highest levels found on October 22, 1997. The red denotes high concentrations of ozone and the green color indicates lower levels. Smoke from fires is seen in white. Credit: NASA

ITEM (17): Measuring Earth's Energy Budget Where The Ocean Meets The Sky [LaRC] - Sometimes the best way to gain understanding of a thing is to observe it from different perspectives. That's the principle behind a research mission conducted this year off the coast of Virginia. It's known as CLAMS-the Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites mission. The purpose is to compare measurements taken at the ground, at multiple altitudes in the atmosphere, and from space to help refine satellite measurements about aerosols and ocean characteristics, both vital for understanding how the Earth's climate works.

(1) Advanced Aircraft Collect Data - CLAMS utilized multiple data collection systems simultaneously. By taking atmospheric measurements at the same time from different places in a vertical column, readings could be compared and validated. Some of the aircraft included in the study were NASA's OV-10, the high-altitude ER-2, a Convair 580, a Proteus, a Learjet, and a Cessna.

(2) Researchers Synchronize Efforts (b-roll) - By using instruments located in the U.S. Coast Guard's Chesapeake lighthouse simultaneously with a fleet of airplanes and the Terra spacecraft, scientists are gaining insight into important aspects of global climate change.

ITEM (18): Testing The Air At The Eastern Edge Of The Pacific [LaRC] - Around the world all air is not the same. That's the motivation behind the TRACE-P experiment, conducted during the spring of 2001. Designed to study the composition of atmospheric gasses found off the Pacific coast of Asia, TRACE-P (for Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific) seeks to understand a number of factors, including how industrially produced gasses from Asia interact with sunlight differently than similar gasses produced in North American and Europe.

(1) Low Pressure Systems Draws Pollutants Out To Sea - In this animation, we see how a low-pressure system that formed over Southeast Asia draws pollutants and aerosols out to sea. By studying the composition and density of these atmospheric contaminants, experts hope to gain a better understanding of the long terms effects humans have on the environment around the Pacific Rim.

(2) Aircraft Gather Data In Situ - Using a variety of airborne and ground based instruments, the space agency and its partners collected data about the territory just off the eastern Pacific coast. NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center sent their DC-8 and their P-3B airplanes to participate. Instruments on board measured the concentration and makeup of various trace gasses, hence the project's moniker.

ITEM (19): Exploring Volcanos In Shirtsleeves [JPL] - One of the best and safest ways to study volcanoes is to analyze data about them somewhere else. However, getting that data has often put researchers not only in peril, but in the challenging position of solving the practical problems associated with its acquisition. Now a pair of instruments recently launched on NASA's flagship Earth observing satellite is helping vulcanologists not only get the information they need, but do so safely, and to a degree of accuracy never before possible.

(1) A View Into The Center Of The Earth - Using the ASTER and MISR instruments flying onboard the Terra spacecraft, scientists can essentially look inside volcanos in ways they never could before. ASTER is ideal for studying surface temperature, radiation emissions, reflectance, and elevation. MISR is well suited for discerning aerosol composition and density, as well as delivering multi-angle views of a subject under scrutiny.

(2) Lava Advancing To The Sea - Lava spewing from active volcanos have played major roles in shaping the Earth's surface. As the molten stone cools when it hits the air and water it finds above the Earth's crust, it alters the landscape. In this visualization, we see the relative progression of lava as it moved doen the Kamoamoa Flow Field on the face of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii.

(3) Ring Of Fire - Volcanos appear on every continent around the globe. This animation helps illustrate just how widespread these geological cauldrons can be found. On the globe shown here, every red triangle represents an active volcano.

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