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Landsat 8 Landsat 7 SMAP Suomi NPP
Landsat 8 Landsat 7 SMAP Suomi NPP

Recent Imagery

You will be directed to the NASA Visible Earth webpage when you select Images by Mission below, or click on the images at right that are randomly generated to represent four out of all possible topics.

Images by Mission
ADEOS Aqua Aquarius Aura CALIPSO CloudSat EO-1 GOES 13-15 GRACE ICESat Jason-1 Landsat 7 Landsat 8 OSTM/Jason-2 QuikSCAT Seasat 1 SeaWinds SORCE Suomi NPP Terra TOPEX TOMS-EP TRMM

GRACE-FO Launches!

The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) mission launched onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Tuesday, May 22, 2018, at 12:47 PM PDT (3:47 PM EDT) from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. To learn more about GRACE-FO, see page 4 of the May-June issue of The Earth Observer.

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A Trip Through The Earth Observer Newsletter

The Earth Observer has entered its thirtieth year as a NASA publication. The very first issue was in March 1989. Our archives are a veritable treasure-trove of history about the development of NASA’s Earth Observing System (EOS), the broader NASA Earth Science Research, Applications, and Flight programs, and related education and outreach activities. In the feature article on page 5 of the March-April 2018 issue, our Executive Editor takes us on a trip through The Earth Observer archives, no doubt stirring memories in readers who were part of these events. For all our readership, we hope that a better appreciation for the past helps inform our present and future endeavors.

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Starting a New Year: The Jan - Feb 2018 Issue of The Earth Observer Newsletter

NASA will commemorate the 60th anniversary of its establishment later this year (2018), with various milestones being celebrated throughout the year. For example, January 31, 2018, marked the 60th anniversary of the launch of Explorer 1, the first U.S. space satellite. The January-February issue of The Earth Observer newsletter highlights results from an assessment of missions in extended operations, provides a status on recently launched assets that build on heritage missions, and reports on the release of recommendations for the prioritization of Earth science observations in the coming decade. The issue also highlights NASA’s recent outreach activities at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, and summarizes recent science meetings and workshops such as the Interagency Workshop on Societal Applications of Satellite Data for Ocean Health and Fisheries.

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GOES-16: The First in a New Generation of Geostationary Satellites

GOES-R is the latest NOAA–NASA GOES mission; it launched on November 19, 2016, and was renamed to GOES-16 after launch and on-orbit checks were complete. GOES-16 is the first in the GOES-R series, which includes GOES-R, -S, -T, and -U, that will launch between now and 2025, ushering in a new era of geosynchronous observing capabilities. The November-December 2017 issue of The Earth Observer includes a feature article about GOES-16, approximately one year after launch. The article introduces the GOES-16 satellite’s improvements, including spacecraft design, its manifest of advanced instruments, resultant data products, and anticipated societal benefits. 

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A Changing Earth at Night

Satellite images of Earth at night—often referred to as “night lights”—have been a gee-whiz curiosity for the public and a tool for fundamental research for nearly 25 years. The map on the front of this poster shows the change in lighting intensity from 2012 to 2016. The map was created using two separate night lights datasets (from 2012 and 2016) derived using data from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)-NASA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP) satellite. The back of the poster explains how scientists use night lights data from VIIRS to study our planet at night.

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NASA's Earth Observing System Project Science Office

NASA’s Earth Observing System (EOS) is a coordinated series of polar-orbiting and low inclination satellites for long-term global observations of the land surface, biosphere, solid Earth, atmosphere, and oceans. As a major component of the Earth Science Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, EOS enables an improved understanding of the Earth as an integrated system. The EOS Project Science Office (EOSPSO) is committed to bringing program information and resources to the Earth science research community and the general public alike.

Download ChartEarth Science Mission Profiles

This website has been designed to cover not just the original Earth Observing System (EOS) missions, but also all of NASA’s Earth-observing satellite missions (many of them joint with other nations and/or agencies), along with other elements of NASA’s Earth Science program. The EOSPSO is funded through the Earth Science Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

NASA Earth Science Division Operating Missions

Updated: July 13, 2018

 
  • ACRIMSAT
    Launch: Dec 20 1999
    Altitude:
    720km
    Inclination:
    98.10°
    Local Node:
    10:00 a.m.
  • ADEOS
    Launch: Aug 17 1996
    Altitude:
    803km
    Inclination:
    98.60°
    Local Node:
    10:15 a.m.
  • ATS
    Launch: Dec 7 1966
  • Aquarius (NASA/Argentina )
    Launch: Jun 10 2011
    Altitude:
    657km
    Inclination:
    98.00°
    Local Node:
    6:00 a.m.
  • ATLAS-1
    Launch: Mar 24 1992
  • CHAMP
    Launch: Jul 15 2000
  • CATS on ISS (NASA)
    Launch: Jan 10 2015
    Altitude:
    420km
    Inclination:
    51.65°
  • CRRES
    Launch: Jul 25 1990
  • DE 1
    Launch: Aug 3 1981
  • DE 2
    Launch: Aug 3 1981
  • EO-1
    Launch: Nov 21 2000
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    10:01 a.m.
  • ERBS
    Launch: Oct 5 1984
  • ESSA
    Launch: Feb 3 1966
  • ERS-1 (ESA)
    Launch: Jul 17 1991
  • GEOSAT
    Launch: Mar 12 1985
  • GOES A-C
    Launch: Oct 16 1975
  • GOES D-H
    Launch: Sep 9 1980
  • GOES I-M
    Launch: Apr 13 1994
  • GRACE (Joint with Germany)
    Launch: Mar 17 2002
    Altitude:
    485km
    Inclination:
    89.00°
  • ICESat
    Launch: Jan 12 2003
    Altitude:
    600km
    Inclination:
    94.00°
  • ISS-RapidScat (NASA)
    Launch: Sep 21 2014
    Altitude:
    420km
    Inclination:
    51.65°
  • Jason-1 (Joint with France)
    Launch: Dec 7 2001
    Altitude:
    1,336km
    Inclination:
    66.00°
  • MOS-1
    Launch: Feb 19 1987
  • MOMS
    Launch: Jun 18 1983
  • Nimbus 1
    Launch: Aug 28 1964
  • Nimbus 2
    Launch: May 15 1966
  • Nimbus 3
    Launch: Apr 14 1969
  • Nimbus 4
    Launch: Apr 8 1970
  • Nimbus 5
    Launch: Dec 11 1972
  • Nimbus 6
    Launch: Jun 12 1975
  • Nimbus 7
    Launch: Oct 24 1978
  • NOAA-POES
    Launch: Mar 28 1993
  • PARASOL (France)
    Launch: Dec 4 2004
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.00°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • RADARSAT (Joint with Canada)
    Launch: Nov 4 1995
  • SeaWiFS
    Launch: Aug 1 1997
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    12:00 noon
  • Seasat 1
    Launch: Jun 28 1978
  • SeaWinds (Joint with Japan and France)
    Launch: Dec 14 2002
    Altitude:
    803km
    Inclination:
    98.60°
  • SRTM (Joint with NGA, Germany, and Italy)
    Launch: Feb 11 2000
  • SIR-C (Joint with Germany and Italy)
    Launch: Apr 19 1994
  • SAGE-III
    Launch: Dec 10 2001
    Altitude:
    1,020km
    Inclination:
    99.50°
    Local Node:
    9:30 a.m.
  • SMS
    Launch: May 17 1974
  • TIROS (NASA)
    Launch: Apr 1 1960
  • TERRIERS
    Launch: May 18 1999
  • TOPEX
    Launch: Aug 10 1992
  • TOMS-EP
    Launch: Jul 2 1996
  • TRMM (Joint with Japan)
    Launch: Nov 27 1997
    Altitude:
    402km
    Inclination:
    35.00°
  • UARS
    Launch: Sep 12 1991
    Altitude:
    585km
    Inclination:
    57.00°
  • Aqua (Joint with Japan and Brazil)
    Launch: May 4 2002
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • Aura (Joint with Netherlands, Finland, and the U.K.)
    Launch: Jul 15 2004
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    1:45 p.m.
  • CALIPSO
    Launch: Apr 28 2006
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • CloudSat (Joint with Canada)
    Launch: Apr 28 2006
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • CYGNSS (NASA)
    Launch: Dec 15 2016
    Altitude:
    510km
    Inclination:
    35.00°
  • DSCOVR (NOAA)
    Launch: Feb 11 2015
  • ECOSTRESS (NASA)
    Launch: Jun 29 2018
    Altitude:
    400km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • GOES-16 (NASA/NOAA)
    Launch: Nov 19 2016
    Altitude:
    35,800km
  • GOES 13-15
    Launch: May 24 2005
  • GPM Core
    Launch: Feb 27 2014
    Altitude:
    407km
    Inclination:
    65.00°
  • GRACE-FO (NASA, German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ))
    Launch: May 22 2018
    Altitude:
    490km
    Inclination:
    89.00°
  • Jason-3 (Joint with NOAA, CNES, and EUMETSAT)
    Launch: Jan 17 2016
    Altitude:
    1,336km
    Inclination:
    66.00°
  • JPSS-1
    Launch: Nov 18 2017
    Altitude:
    833km
    Inclination:
    98.70°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • Landsat 7 (Joint with USGS)
    Launch: Apr 15 1999
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    10:05 a.m.
  • Landsat 8
    Launch: Feb 11 2013
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    10:30 a.m.
  • LAGEOS 1&2
    Launch: May 4 1976
  • LIS on ISS (NASA)
    Launch: Feb 19 2017
    Altitude:
    420km
    Inclination:
    51.65°
  • NOAA-N
    Launch: May 20 2005
  • OSTM/Jason-2 (Joint with NOAA, CNES, and EUMETSAT)
    Launch: Jan 20 2008
    Altitude:
    1,336km
    Inclination:
    66.00°
  • OCO-2 (NASA)
    Launch: Jul 2 2014
    Altitude:
    705km
    Inclination:
    98.20°
    Local Node:
    1:15 p.m.
  • QuikSCAT
    Launch: Jun 19 1999
    Altitude:
    803km
    Inclination:
    98.60°
    Local Node:
    10:15 a.m.
  • SMAP
    Launch: Jan 31 2015
    Altitude:
    685km
    Inclination:
    98.00°
    Local Node:
    6:00 a.m.
  • SORCE
    Launch: Jan 25 2003
    Altitude:
    640km
    Inclination:
    40.00°
  • SAGE III-ISS (NASA, ESA)
    Launch: Feb 19 2017
    Altitude:
    350km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • Suomi NPP
    Launch: Oct 28 2011
    Altitude:
    824km
    Inclination:
    97.10°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • Terra
    Launch: Dec 18 1999
    Altitude:
    720km
    Inclination:
    98.10°
    Local Node:
    10:40 a.m.
  • GCOM-W1 (JAXA)
    Launch: May 18 2012
    Altitude:
    700km
    Inclination:
    98.00°
  • TSIS-1
    Launch: Dec 15 2017
    Altitude:
    415km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • ACE
  • CLARREO
    Altitude:
    609km
    Inclination:
    90.00°
  • CLARREO Path. (NASA)
    Launch: 2020
    Altitude:
    400km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • EMIT on ISS (NASA)
    Launch: 2022
    Altitude:
    400km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • GeoCARB (NASA)
    Launch: 2022
    Altitude:
    35,400km
  • GEDI on ISS (NASA)
    Launch: 2018
    Altitude:
    400km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • ICESat-2
    Launch: Sep 2018
    Altitude:
    481km
    Inclination:
    92.00°
  • JPSS-2
    Launch: 2021
    Altitude:
    833km
    Inclination:
    98.70°
    Local Node:
    1:30 p.m.
  • Landsat 9 (NASA/USGS)
    Launch: 2021
  • MAIA (NASA)
    Launch: 2021
  • NI-SAR (NASA, ISRO)
    Launch: 2022
    Altitude:
    747km
    Inclination:
    98.00°
  • ISS-OCO-3 (NASA)
    Launch: 2019
    Altitude:
    400km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • PACE (NASA)
    Launch: 2023
  • PREFIRE (NASA)
    Launch: 2021
    Altitude:
    470km
    Inclination:
    82.00°
  • Sentinel-6 (ESA/CNES/COM/EUMETSAT/NASA/NOAA)
    Launch: 2020
    Altitude:
    1,366km
    Inclination:
    66.00°
  • SWOT (Joint with France)
    Launch: 2022
  • TROPICS (NASA)
    Launch: 2020
    Altitude:
    600km
    Inclination:
    30.00°
  • TSIS-2
    Launch: 2020
    Altitude:
    415km
    Inclination:
    51.60°
  • TEMPO (NASA)
    Launch: 2019
    Altitude:
    35,786km
    Inclination:
    0.00°
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