Monthly Archive: April 2013
Flooding in LaPlata
NASA image courtesy NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Caption by Michon Scott.
In early April 2013, severe flooding claimed more than 50 lives, and forced thousands from their homes in the Buenos Aires region, news sources said. Many of the casualties occurred in La Plata, situated about 60 kilometers (40 miles) southeast of Buenos Aires. Roughly 40 centimeters (16 inches) of rain fell on La Plata in a two-hour period April 2–3, Agence France-Presse reported.
Flood water lingered when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this image on April 4, 2013. Read more
Mike Ramsey
Mike Ramsey, a professor and vulcanologist at the University of Pittsburgh, is among 22 scientists being featured during April’s Earth Month for Know Your Earth 3.0, Local Connections, a partnership between 22 of NASA’s Earth-observing missions that nominated a scientist or engineer to be featured on NASA websites during April 2013. Ramsey uses data from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on board Terra.
Ice on the Caspian
NASA Earth Observatory images by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using data from the Level 1 and Atmospheres Active Distribution System (LAADS). Caption by Michon Scott, with information from Walt Meier, National Snow and Ice Data Center.
The Caspian Sea isn’t really a sea but in fact a giant lake that spans roughly 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) from north to south. In the winter, ice often forms over the lake’s northernmost reaches, while the central and southern parts remain ice free. Temperatures are generally lower in the north, so you might guess that the ice owes its existence purely to the higher latitude. But the reality is more complex: From north to south, the Caspian Sea also exhibits differences in salinity and depth. Read more
Dust Storm in Libya
NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response. Caption by Michon Scott.
A dust storm blew out of Libya and across the Mediterranean Sea in late March 2013. Southwest of the coastal city of Banghazi (Benghazi), an especially thick dust plume spanned roughly 100 kilometers (60 miles), and the plume was thick enough to completely hide the ocean surface below. Read more