The Earth Observer

The Earth Observer newsletter, published by NASA's Science Support Office (Code 610) at the Goddard Space Flight Center, has been an authoritative source for consolidating NASA Earth Science news for over three decades. Past issues are available for download via the Archives Page.

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Earth Observer Fall Leaves

The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is calling on volunteers of all ages to help students and citizen scientists document seasonal change through leaf color and land cover. The data collection event will support students across North America, Latin America, Central America, and Europe, who are working together to document the seasonal changes taking place from September through December. The observations will also provide vital data for GLOBE students creating student research projects for the GLOBE 2025 International Virtual Science Symposium (IVSS). The project is part of GLOBE’s Intensive Observation Period (IOP), which collects data during a focused period to assess how climate change is unfolding in different regions of the world.

Editor's Corner

These editorials chronicle NASA Earth Science history since 1989 – from the perspective of the EOS Senior Project Scientist. Each individual column reports on important “current” events that were taking place in NASA Earth Science at the time they were written.

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The Earth Observer Editor’s Corner: Summer 2024

8 min read

NASA’s third EOS mission—AURA—marked 20 years in orbit on July 15, with two of its four instruments—MLS and OMI—still collecting…

Article4 months ago
March Editor's Corner Image

The Earth Observer Editor’s Corner: Jan – Feb 2024

9 min read

NASA’s Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission releases initial data to the public, highlighting the advanced capabilities of OCI.

Article8 months ago
EMIT Data Image

The Earth Observer Editor’s Corner: Nov – Dec 2023

9 min read

NASA’s Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission was launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Base on February 8, 2024.

Article9 months ago

Feature Articles

Read stories about the history and accomplishments of current  and former NASA Earth Science missions, programs, field campaigns, and outreach events, as well as a variety of other topics of interest to NASA Earth Science past, present, and future.

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GPM Celebrates Ten Years of Observing Precipitation for Science and Society

40 min read

Introduction On February 27, 2014, the four-ton Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory (CO) spacecraft launched aboard a Japanese H-IIA rocket from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. On that day, the GPM mission, a joint Earth-observing mission between NASA…

Earth Day Main Photo

Celebrating the First Earth Day Event at NASA Headquarters

4 min read

Introduction Organized by the Science Mission Directorate’s Science Support Office (SSO), NASA hosted its 12th annual Earth Day Celebration event from April 18–19, 2024. For the first time ever, the two-day event was held at NASA Headquarters (HQ) in Washington,…

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Aura at 20 Years

14 min read

Introduction In the 1990s and early 2000s, an international team of engineers and scientists designed an integrated observatory for atmospheric composition – a bold endeavor to provide unprecedented detail that was essential to understanding how Earth’s ozone (O3) layer and…

Meeting Summaries

Read reports on Earth Science mission and instrument Science Team meetings, on science and applications workshops, and on other science meetings taking place both within NASA Earth Science and in the broader national and international Earth science communities.

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Summary of the 10th SWOT Applications Workshop

21 min read

Introduction The tenth Surface Water Ocean Topography (SWOT) Applications Workshop took place December 7–8, 2023 at the California Institute of…

Article1 month ago
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ICESat-2 Hosts Third Applications Workshop

16 min read

Introduction The NASA Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 mission (ICESat-2), launched September 15, 2018, continues the first ICESat mission,…

Article2 months ago
Sun Climate Group Photo

Summary of the 2023 Sun – Climate Symposium

18 min read

Introduction Observations of the Sun and Earth from space continue to revolutionize our view and understanding of how solar variability…

Article4 months ago

Earth Science Meeting and Workshop Calendars

NASA Community

  1. 01

    March 31–April 4, 2025
    Sun-Climate Symposium

    Fairbanks, AK

    Explore

Global Science Community

  1. 01

    November 11–22, 2024
    UN Climate Change Conference (COP 29)

    Baku, Azerbaijan

    Explore

  2. 02

    November 18–21, 2024
    4th Advancement of POLarimetric Observations (APOLO) Conference

    Kyoto, Japan

    Explore

  3. 03

    December 9–13, 2024
    American Geophysical Union (AGU24)

    Washington, DC

    Explore

  4. 04

    January 12–16, 2025
    American Meteorological Society (AMS) Annual Meeting

    New Orleans, LA

    Explore

  5. 05

    April 27–May 2, 2025
    European Geosciences Union (EGU)

    Vienna, Austria

    Explore

  6. 06

    May 25–30, 2025

    Makuhari, Chiba, Japan

    Explore

Main Banner Slice sample
The main banner background image shown above is of the Atchafalaya Delta in Louisiana, taken by Landsat 8 on Dec. 1, 2016. This false-color image emphasizes the difference between land and water, while allowing viewers to observe waterborne sediment.
Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

Earth Observer Staff

Steven Platnick Pic

EOS Senior Project Scientist

Alan Ward Pic

Executive Editor

Dalia Kirshenblat Pic

Managing Editor

Doug Bennett Pic

Associate Editor

Mike Marosy Pic

Design/Production

Stacy Kish Pic

Assistant/Technical Editor

Ernie Hilsenrath Staff Pic

Technical Editor

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