Science Communication Material

Air Pollution: Europe from Space, 2005-2010 (2012)
NO2_EuropeLenticular_508.pdf

A close-up look at air quality over Europe, 2005-2010, as detected from satellite. See how population and industrialization affects nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels and how concentrations of this pollutant have changed over time.

Air Quality (2003)
2003_air_litho_alt.pdf

The Clean Air Act, created in 1972 and last amended in 1990, responds to the basic societal need for clean, breathable air and recognizes the need to protect this vital natural resource. Congress directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for pollutants considered harmful to public health and the environment. Although these regulations have significantly improved the quality of our nation’s air over the past 30 years, people in some areas are still exposed to air pollution levels that exceed the NAAQS. Numerous studies have shown significant effects of air pollution on human health, agriculture, ecosystems, and physical infrastructure.

Aqua (2001)
2001_Aqua_litho.pdf

The Aqua mission, launched in May 2002, builds on NASA’s long history of studying the Earth and its atmosphere from the impressive perspective of space. Amongst the aims are an integrated understanding of the Earth system at present, an improved understanding of the prominent changes the system has undergone in the past, and improved predictions regarding how the system is likely to change in the future.

Aqua Education & Public Outreach (2011)
Aqua_EPO_Poster.pdf

This poster highlights the education and public outreach activities of the Aqua satellite mission. It features examples that highlight how Aqua data are used, as well as the efforts of the Aqua team to distribute this information and demonstrate its applications.

ASTER (2001)
2001_ASTER_litho.pdf

The ASTER instrument measures cloud properties, vegetation index, surface mineralogy, soil properties, surface temperature, and surface topography for selected regions of the Earth.

Avian Influenza Early Warning: Using NASA Data to Predict Pandemics (2010)
2010_Avian_Flu_508.pdf

Avian Influenza (AI) is an infection caused by avian influenza viruses. This lithograph explains how NASA data, models, and analysis techniques are used to enhance the decision capabilities concerning (AI) and pandemic influenza risks.

Aviation (2006)
2006_aviation_litho.pdf

To compete in the global economy of the 21st Century, the United States requires a safe and efficient aviation infrastructure. Developing this infrastructure will require improvements to the safety, security, and capacity of the National Airspace System (NAS), as well as reductions in the environmental effects of aviation—such as noise and air pollution. Likewise, research has shown that the impact of the environment upon aviation—such as severe weather and other natural phenomena—could be substantially mitigated if existing satellite observations could be more fully utilized.

Birth of a New Iceberg in Pine Island Bay, Antarctica (2001)
2001_Antarctica_Lith.pdf

This lithograph shows the break-off of a large tabular iceberg from the Pine Island Glacier in West Antarctica. This event occurred between November 4th and 12th, 2001, and provides powerful evidence of rapid changes underway in this area of Antarctica. The three images were acquired by the vertical-viewing (nadir) camera of the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) instrument aboard NASA’s Terra spacecraft. The dimensions of the iceberg are approximately 42 kilometers by 17 kilometers (26 miles by 11 miles).

Carbon Management (2005)
2005_carbon_litho_alt.pdf

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is fundamental for life on Earth. Human beings exhale CO2 as a waste product when they breathe, but plants absorb it in the life-sustaining process of photosynthesis—which human beings depend for the food we eat. CO2 is also a naturally occurring greenhouse gas (not the most efficient such gas but certainly the most abundant); its presence in the atmosphere moderates Earth’s average surface temperature and keeps nighttime temperatures from plunging to extreme cold.

CERES (2001)
2001_CERES_litho.pdf

CERES measures the balance of solar energy received by the Earth and the energy reflected and emitted back into space. Understanding the energy coming into and going out of the Earth system is critical for assessing whether scientists’ models of global climate change are making accurate predictions. This pair of images is the Terra mission’s first in an ongoing series of such measurements of our planet’s changing climate system.