The University of Wisconsin-Madison Space Science and Engineering Center owns and operates a network of low-earth orbiting direct broadcast satellite antennas around the United States, and provides software support for partner institutions with similar antenna systems. Last week, a new version of the web interface hosted by each antenna’s on-site... Read More
Polar-Orbiting satellites flying over Florida viewed remarkable changes in water quality from before and after the passage of Hurricane Ian. Imagery from Suomi-NPP, for example, from 25 September and 30 September, toggled below (imagery derived from the VIIRS Today website), shows a large increase in turbidity in the Gulf (and over the Atlantic... Read More
GOES-16 (GOES-East) “Red” Visible (0.64 µm) images (above) showed the widespread coverage of ice across Lake Erie on 31 January 2022. Surface winds were generally light across the region, minimizing wind stress on the pack ice. A careful inspection of the imagery revealed some straight pathways cut through the ice by US... Read More
A MODIS-based true-color cloud-free image, above, from SSEC’s Real Earth (link) shows a distinct lack of snow cover — for early November!!! — over the USA and Canada. These BRDF (Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function) fields account for sun angle, viewing angle and surface type; data over the past 16 days are used in... Read More
