In celebration of Terra’s 20 years in orbit three sessions (two oral and one poster) are being held at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, December 9 – 14, 2019 in San Francisco.

IN13A Terra@20: Data System Evolution to Advance Climate Research I

• Oral presentations
• Moscone West – 2018, L2
• December 9 1:40 pm – 3:40 pm

On December 19, 1999, NASA launched the Terra spacecraft, a unique mission to explore the connections between Earth’s atmosphere, land, snow and ice, ocean and energy balance to understand Earth’s climate and climate change. No other Earth science mission has been as productive as Terra; its exponential increase in data distribution has driven many changes in science data systems.  This session will address the 20 years of advances in algorithm and data production, data maturity and quality, and data discovery and access.  Special interest topics include improvements in access to Terra data that subsequently resulted in advancing climate research and applications which would not have been achieved otherwise. The convening committee will request oral presentations representing data management from each of the five instruments on Terra.  We will also seek presentations from industry and academia to discuss how data management has changed and best practices.

GC14B Terra: Twenty Years as the Earth Observing System Flagship Observatory I

• Oral presentations
• Moscone West – 2007, L2
• December 9 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

The Terra platform celebrates 20years since the launch of its five instruments (ASTER, CERES, MISR, MODIS, and MOPITT) in December 1999.  The goal for Terra was to provide a broad range of products to provide answers to the overarching question, “How is the Earth changing and what are the consequences for life on Earth?”   Speakers will be invited to describe the impacts of data from Terra on our understanding of global atmospheric, land, and ocean processes including contributions to agriculture, air quality, climate, disaster management, ecological forecasting, public health, water resources, and weather.  The importance of Terra’s 20-year data record and for its continued operation will be emphasized.

IN21E Terra@20: Data System Evolution to Advance Climate Research II Posters

• Poster session
• Moscone South – Poster Hall
• December 10 8: 00 am – 12:20 pm

On December 19, 1999, NASA launched the Terra spacecraft, a unique mission to explore the connections between Earth’s atmosphere, land, snow and ice, ocean and energy balance to understand Earth’s climate and climate change. No other Earth science mission has been as productive as Terra; its exponential increase in data distribution has driven many changes in science data systems.  This session will address the 20 years of advances in algorithm and data production, data maturity and quality, and data discovery and access.  Special interest topics include improvements in access to Terra data that subsequently resulted in advancing climate research and applications which would not have been achieved otherwise. The convening committee will request oral presentations representing data management from each of the five instruments on Terra.  We will also seek presentations from industry and academia to discuss how data management has changed and best practices.

Hot, dry weather and fierce easterlies fanned the flames of several blazes, endangering homes and lives. On October 25, 2019, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a natural-color image (top) with a wide view of fires near the Pacific Coast.

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/145787/winds-drive-smoky-wildfires-in-california-mexico

After a wet spring in the eastern United States, a quick-onset drought has parched fields. The maps show Evaporative Stress Index (ESI) data, a drought indicator based on observations of land surface temperatures from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration geostationary satellites and on observations of leaf area index from NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites and the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on Suomi NPP. The combination makes it possible to gauge evapotranspiration—how much water is evaporating from the land surface and from the leaves of plants.

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/145762/a-flash-drought-dries-the-southeast

Farmers use a number of different methods to irrigate crops, and some of them result in pretty interesting shapes.  In this issue, The Shape of Farming; Water for Crops, EO Kids looks at what water has to do with different types of farming practices, and how these practices look from space. Plus, grow your own mini-farm and see how your garden grows with this month’s “Data Viz.”

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/blogs/eokids/the-shape-of-farming-water-for-crops/

Do you like clouds? Like to help scientists look at MODIS data a little differently…from below?  Then join citizen scientists around the globe in the Fall Cloud Challenge. Download the GLOBE Observer app, after registering, tap the clouds protocol icon, and then follow the prompts within the app. Before you know it, you’ll be a cloud expert and be providing valuable data from the ground about what’s up in your sky. The Fall Cloud Challenge runs October 15 – November 15, 2019.

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/blogs/earthmatters/2019/10/04/nasa-globe-fall-data-challenge-whats-up-in-your-sky/