Sea Ice Max Continues Downward Trend

In September 2012, the ice cap over the Arctic Ocean shrank to its lowest extent on record, about half the size of the average summertime extent from 1979 to 2000. That sea ice minimum continued a long-term trend of diminishing ice cover over the past few decades.

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Extensive Ice Fractures occurs in the Beaufort Sea

The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP satellite captured this view of extensive sea-ice fracturing off the northern coast of Alaska. The event began in late-January and spread west toward Banks Island throughout February and March 2013.

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NASA Chief says Prayer our only hope if asteroid takes aim at Earth

NASA chief Charles Bolden has advice on how to handle a large asteroid headed toward Earth: Pray.

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March Equinox signals beginning of Spring for Northern Hemisphere

The Spring Equinox. The world as seen from space at 6am. Image EUMETSAT

Spring arrived in the Northern Hemisphere today, even though it might not feel that way to residents of much of Europe that have been plagued by unseasonably cold conditions.

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WORLD FROM SPACE - Snowcover in the Northeast United States

Snow cover sprawled across the northeastern United States in early March 2013. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this natural-color image on March 9. Snow cover stretched from West Virginia northward into Canada, and from the western shore of Lake Ontario eastward to the Atlantic Ocean.

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Florida Man Missing After Sinkhole Opens Under Bedroom

A giant sinkhole caused by the rains of tropical storm Agatha is seen in Guatemala City in June 2010.

A 36-year-old man disappeared last night when a sinkhole opened up under his bedroom in the U.S. State of Florida, swallowing him as his brother tried to rescue him.

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Eyes to the skies as Comet PANSTARRS becomes visible during March

Luis Argerich from Buenos Aires, Argentina, captured Comet PANSTARRS in the sky above Mercedes, Argentina, on February 11, 2013. The comet shone at magnitude 4.5 to the left of an Iridium flare.

The long wait is nearly over. Northern Hemisphere skygazers haven’t seen a bright comet with a long tail since Comet Hale-Bopp graced the night sky in 1997. But if predictions hold, Comet PANSTARRS (C/2011 L4) should be a nice naked-eye object and look impressive through binoculars after sunset starting in the second week of March.

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Another Massive Snowstorm Strikes Western United States

Following on the heels of another storm, heavy snow fell on Colorado and neighboring states on February 24, 2013. On February 25, the Denver/Boulder Forecast Office of the National Weather Service reported preliminary snow totals from the area, including 27.2 inches (69.1 centimeters) west of Denver, and blizzard conditions east of the city. Like the previous storm, this one continued moving eastward.

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Northeastern USA Coastline in Sunglint

Looking out at the Earth’s surface from the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts frequently observe sunglint highlighting both ocean and inland water surfaces. The Atlantic Ocean—including Cape Cod Bay and Buzzards Bay, along the coastlines of Massachusetts and Rhode Island—has a burnished, mirror-like appearance in this image. This is due to sunlight reflected off the water surface back towards the astronaut-photographer. The peak reflection point is towards the right side of the image, lending the waters of Long Island Sound and the upper Massachusetts coastline an even brighter appearance.

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Nighttime View of Snow across the United States

Early on the morning of February 22, 2013, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP satellite captured this nighttime view of heavy snow over the United States. 

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Dust Storm hits Mexico and New Mexico

On February 20, 2013, dust plumes arose in northern Mexico and southern New Mexico. The plumes blew toward the northeast, some of them mingling with clouds north of New Mexico’s White Sands National Monument. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image the same day.

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VIDEO - First Russia, Now Cuba And USA Experience Meteor Explosions

Cuba and the west coast of the USA have apparently experienced a phenomenon similar to the meteorite that detonated over Russia this week, with startled residents in both locations describing a bright light in the sky and a loud explosion.  It remains unknown whether the reported phenomena are related to the meteor strike in central Russia.

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Asteroid to make closest Earth fly-by on record this Friday

Asteroid 2012 DA14 will pass very close to the Earth on Friday (February 15, 2013), so close that it will pass inside the ring of geosynchronous weather and communications satellites.

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Winter Storm Nemo - A Review

In early February 2013, a potent storm with hurricane-force wind gusts pounded the northeastern United States for the second time in four months. Snowfall was reported in fourteen states from Wisconsin to the Atlantic Coast, from North Carolina to Maine, with the most prodigious totals in the New England coastal states. As meteorologist Jeff Masters of Weather Underground put it, the snowfall from this blizzard was measured in feet, not inches.

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Dust Storm Hits New Mexico

Dust plumes blew over parts of Mexico, New Mexico, and Texas in early February 2013. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this natural-color image on February 9. This image shows the dust storm on the morning of February 9; MODIS on NASA’s Aqua satellite observed the same region on the afternoon of the same day.

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WORLD FROM SPACE - Snow-covered New England

A powerful winter storm left New Englanders digging out from heavy snow in early February 2013. According to unofficial totals released by the National Weather Service, snowfall totaled up to 33.5 inches (85 centimeters) in Connecticut, 31.0 inches (79 centimeters) in Massachusetts, and 30.4 inches (77 centimeters) in New Hampshire.

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Rocketing Into the Northern Lights over Alaska

Auroras are a visible reminder of our planet’s connection to space. 

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WORLD FROM SPACE Winter Storm Nemo

A remarkably powerful blizzard brought heavy snow and strong winds to the northeastern portion of the United States on February 9, 2013. A collision of cold air from Canada with moist air from the Gulf of Mexico brought snowfalls that extended from northern New Jersey through Maine.

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U.S. Braces For A Powerful Winter Storm

Residents of the U.S. north-east are bracing themselves for a major winter storm that could deliver up to 2ft of snow in areas including New York City and Boston on Friday and Saturday.

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Dust Storm Hits New Mexico

On January 29, 2013, a dust storm blew though northern Mexico. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image the same day. Dust mingled with clouds over parts of Mexico, New Mexico, and Texas.

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