Aqua Satellite
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NASA
Peatland Fires Darken Skies in Indonesia
If there were an apex predator among fires, tropical peatland fires would be a top contender. These fires, which burn in dried wetland soils, are slow-burning, highly polluting, and notoriously difficult to extinguish because they smolder at low temperatures and often burn underground through expansive deposits of peat. By one estimate, peat fires generate three times more fine particulate matter than other tropical forest fires, five…
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NASA
Smoke Blankets Oregon
Dry thunderstorms that popped up over the Cascade Range on the evening of July 15, 2026, peppered Oregon and Washington with thousands of lightning strikes as they moved east across the states. By the following day, NASA satellites had begun to detect large numbers of wildland fires burning throughout central and eastern Oregon. Though initially small, these blazes strengthened as they were fanned by gusty winds…
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NASA
Wave of Dust Rolls Through Texas
The Ides of March brought perilous weather to West Texas and the state’s Panhandle. A strong cold front blasted south across the arid plains on March 15, 2026, bringing stiff winds that stirred up a curtain of dust. The cloud of suspended particles slashed visibility and made for treacherous travel as it swept across the region. The high winds, coupled with dry…
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NASA
Smoke Rises Over Big Cypress National Preserve
On February 22, 2026, a wildland fire was discovered in Big Cypress National Preserve, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of Naples, Florida. The blaze, dubbed the National fire, moved through dry vegetation and sent a plume of smoke billowing over parts of the preserve and nearby communities. The MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this image on the afternoon…
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NASA
Floods Inundate Southern Mozambique
Residents of southern Mozambique who live or farm near rivers are accustomed to heading to higher ground during the wet season. But even by local standards, the deluge in January 2026 was remarkable for its scale and severity. In December and January, weeks of intense rain swelled rivers and overwhelmed key reservoirs, sending floodwaters spilling into heavily populated areas along the Limpopo and…
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NASA
Childhood Snow Days Transformed Linette Boisvert into a Sea Ice Scientist
Linette Boisvert turned a childhood love of snow into a career as a sea ice scientist studying climate change. Name: Linette BoisvertTitle: Assistant Lab Chief, Cryospheric Sciences Branch, and Deputy Project Scientist for the Aqua SatelliteFormal Job Classification: Sea Ice ScientistOrganization: Cryospheric Science Branch, Science Directorate (Code 615) “When it snowed, school was cancelled so I loved winter weather, and I was…
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