It"s Earth Day today and we are high above the blue marble looking down on the border between Arkansas and Mississippi. Those small, blocky shapes are towns, fields, and pastures, and the teal green is the mighty Mississippi River. Anyone who has flown in the window seat of an airplane and gazed down at Earth below might wonder why the colors in this image look so unreal. That"s because they are. This image was taken in 2013 by Landsat 7, a NASA satellite that uses thermal infrared sensors to help scientists better distinguish flora, fauna, water, and manmade objects. For almost 50 years, NASA has been using satellite imagery to understand how climate change and population growth are affecting our fragile planet. These satellites help NASA see where deforestation and wildfires are happening, where glaciers are melting, and how rising waters are encroaching on cities.
Gazing down on planet Earth
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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The 80th anniversary of D-Day
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Welcome to my neck of the woods
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Our Lady of the Rocks
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It’s Endangered Species Day
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St. Paul Winter Carnival
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The most wonderful day of the year. Period.
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Westerheversand Lighthouse
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Big-wave hunters watch Nazaré
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Salmon migration in full swing
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Native American Heritage Month
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Ready. Set. Snow.
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Too awesome to be a planet
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A towering view of the Pale Mountains
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Gone ‘lightseeing’ in Berlin
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Snow on the temple
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Get the bear facts
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Zion National Park, Utah
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International Geodiversity Day
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Where the bearded reedling sings
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World Otter Day
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Tigh Mor Trossachs on Loch Achray, Scotland
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The Alhambra in Granada, Spain
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Celebrating Native American Heritage Month
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A midsummer twilight s dream
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It s National Camera Day. Get the picture?
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Keep watching the skies
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The power of the forest
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Svolvaer, Lofoten Islands, Norway
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Hey, don t you guys have somewhere to be?
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World Environment Day
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