America.gov-Space: Spinoffs

Nations Join Forces To Expand Access to Earth Observations

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 17:49:57 GMT

A worldwide effort is under way to expand the access of nations to the range of data being gathered night and day by terrestrial, oceanic, airborne and space-based instruments that monitor the globe. Those who receive the information can use it to make decisions about vital issues, from natural resources to disaster threats.

Benefits Arise from Global Effort To Link Earth Observation Data

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 16:11:29 GMT

Two years into the 10-year plan to revolutionize the way environmental data are used to monitor and better understand the planet’s land, sea and atmospheric conditions, scientific advances that will benefit all nations already are being announced. The effort involves building a global earth observation system of systems, or GEOSS.

Iraq Water Resources Benefit from U.S. Expertise, Funding

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:24:32 GMT

U.S. scientists and engineers are working with the Iraq Ministry of Water Resources to install the latest technology and implement modern methods for managing water resources. The effort is important because Iraq’s water resources must be monitored and managed to optimize distribution of water for agriculture and electrical generation.

Satellites Let Scientists View Earth as Integrated System

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 12:28:55 GMT

Direct observations of oceans, land surfaces, the atmosphere and glaciers have made it possible in 2007 for scientists to state with more than 90 percent certainty that Earth's climate is warming and human activities are driving the change. USINFO talks with experts about the capabilities and limitations of current observation technologies.

Satellite Flood Forecasts Save Lives, Livelihoods in Bangladesh

Fri, 10 Aug 2007 20:54:24 GMT

Deadly floodwaters finally are receding in rivers of the South Asian nation of Bangladesh, after killing nearly 200 people and affecting 12 million. The toll was eased by an advanced flood forecasting system developed in the United States and combined this year with a network of local volunteers and people from government and nongovernmental organizations to make sure the warnings reached those most at risk.

South America Satellite Coverage Limits Natural Disaster Effects

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 20:53:03 GMT

South Americans and millions of others in the Western Hemisphere are benefiting from a repositioning of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) geostationary operational environmental satellite spacecraft, a move aimed at obtaining more information to lessen the effects of natural disasters in the region. NOAA Administrator Conrad Lautenbacher, announcing the satellite's shift at the Embassy of Brazil in Washington, says that “the United States welcomes this chance to provide good data to our Latin American neighbors.”

U.S. Satellite Images of Earth Help Countries Worldwide

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:49:12 GMT

U.S. agencies responsible for the Landsat series of Earth observation satellites have agreed that the next-generation Landsat will launch in 2011, and nations besides the United States will benefit from the continued imaging of the planet’s oceans, land surfaces and ice cover. In Africa, environmental ministers are learning about and analyzing environmental changes in their regions over eight years. In Saudi Arabia, Landsat images helped scientists from the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Naval Medical Research Unit-3 and the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research deal with an outbreak of Rift Valley fever.

U.S. Agencies Moving Forward in Planning Landsat 7 Successor

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 20:45:29 GMT

After 35 years and 2 million images of the planet’s surface – and two orbiting satellites with failing instruments and scant fuel reserves – the Landsat Earth observation program is getting a new satellite and a new, more stable, mission plan. The Landsat satellites have produced data that scientists around the world use for a wide variety of activities. The newest satellite, scheduled to launch in 2011, is called the Landsat Data Continuity Mission.

Scientists Create High-Resolution Map of Antarctica

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 10:02:35 GMT

U.S. researchers have woven together nearly 1,100 images from the Landsat 7 satellite to create the most detailed, high-resolution map ever produced of Antarctica. It offers seamless, cloud-free views of the coldest continent on Earth in 10 times greater detail than ever has been possible, views that are available to the public through a Web site launched by U.S. and British researchers.

NASA Study Finds World Reaching Warmest Levels in 12,000 Years

Tue, 26 Sep 2006 15:04:16 GMT

A new study by NASA climatologists finds that the world's temperature is reaching a level that has not been seen in thousands of years. The study concludes that, because of a rapid warming trend over 30 years, Earth is now reaching and passing through the warmest temperatures in the current interglacial period, which has lasted nearly 12,000 years.

NASA Study Identifies Factors That Limit Growth of Ocean Plants

Thu, 31 Aug 2006 15:18:15 GMT

A NASA-sponsored study shows that by using a new technique, scientists can determine what factors limit the growth of ocean algae, or phytoplankton, and how that growth affects Earth's climate. The study examines the health of the microscopic ocean plants in the tropical Pacific Ocean, an area that plays an important role in regulating the quantity of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere and thereby influencing the world’s climate.

NASA Technology Aids Water Purification Effort in Iraq

Thu, 15 Jun 2006 15:20:58 GMT