Impressive global image of the Earth taken by a NASA satellite
It’s a stunning image of our planet that captures everything from the brilliant blue of the Caribbean Sea to the dense smog of the north. India.
But apart from providing a new global perspective of Earth from space, the image is just the start of a new science mission that will monitor ocean ecology and marine health, as well as track the forest fires, droughts and floods.
That’s because it was taken by a recently launched NASA satellite, NOAA-21, which experts hope will provide vital information about our planet’s oceans, atmosphere and land.
The Earth observation spacecraft has an instrument known as a Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS), which began collecting data in early December and produced a mosaic of frames over a 24-hour period.
Impressive: In addition to providing a new global perspective of Earth from space, this image is just the beginning of a new science mission that will monitor ocean ecology and marine health, as well as monitor wildfires , droughts and floods.
It captures everything from the sparkling blue Caribbean Sea (pictured) to the snowy Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau.
It combined all kinds of features, such as the snow-capped Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau, with the fog and smog of northern India caused by agricultural burning.
VIIRS measures sea surface temperature, a metric that is important for monitoring hurricane formation, while tracking ocean color helps monitor phytoplankton activity, a key indicator of ocean ecology and marine health.
“The turquoise color that is visible around Cuba and the Bahamas in the lower left image above comes from sediments in the shallow water around the continental shelf,” said Dr. Satya Kalluri, program scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
On the ground, VIIRS can detect and measure wildfires, droughts and floods, and its data can be used to track the thickness and movement of wildfire smoke.
The instrument also provides analysis of snow and ice cover, clouds, haze, aerosols and dust, and the health of the world’s crops.
It collects images in both the visible and infrared light spectrum, allowing scientists to see the details of the Earth’s surface.
One of its most important uses is to produce images of Alaska, Dr. Kalluri added, because satellites like NOAA-21 orbit the Earth from the North Pole to the South Pole, so they fly directly over the Arctic several times. per day
It also has what is known as a day and night band, which captures images of lights at night, such as city lights, lightning, auroras, and lights from ships and fires.
“VIIRS serves so many disciplines, it’s an absolutely critical set of measurements,” said Dr. James Gleason, NASA project scientist for the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) flight project.
“VIIRS provides many different data products that are used by scientists in unrelated fields, from agricultural economists trying to make crop forecasts, to air quality scientists predicting where wildfire smoke will be, to to disaster support teams counting night lights to understand the impact of a wildfire. disaster.’
NOAA-21 is the second operational satellite in the JPSS series, having been launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base on November 10.
The previous one, known as NOAA-20, was launched in November 2017.
Covered: It also broke through fog and smog in northern India (pictured), which experts say was caused by agricultural burning.
NOAA-21 (pictured in an artist’s impression) is the second operational satellite in the JPSS series, which entered orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base on November 10.
Both craft observe the entirety of Earth’s surface twice a day as they cruise 512 miles (824 kilometers) above our planet at 17,000 mph (27,360 km/h).
A third JPSS satellite will be launched in 2027 and a fourth in 2032.
Another research satellite known as Suomi-NPP, launched in 2011, served as the model for the JPSS series.
“We launch multiple weather satellites to double and now triple ensure that we always have one. Space is a dangerous environment,” Dr. Gleason said.
“Things happen and you can lose an instrument or a satellite, but we can’t lose the data. It’s too important, for too many people.’
NOAA-21 will be the 21st polar orbiting satellite operated by NOAA and will have a life of about seven years.
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