Surface Water

Earth Observatory
Ice & Glaciers
Surface Water
Topography
Snow-capped mountains carved by deep river valleys preside over northwestern Washington state.
Posted July 23, 2026
Earth Observatory
Ice & Glaciers
Landsat 9
Surface Water
Topography
Sediment eroded from ice-capped mountains splays out across a broad river valley on Russia’s Severny Island.
Posted July 14, 2026
Earth Observatory
Landsat 8 / LDCM (Landsat Data Continuity Mission)
Surface Water
Orange streams are now being spotted in hundreds of watersheds in permafrost areas throughout Alaska’s Brooks Range.
Posted July 13, 2026
Earth Observatory
Surface Water
Water Blooms
Water Quality
Using satellite data, researchers connected harmful algal blooms with warm water and low water levels at one of Colorado’s largest reservoirs.
Posted July 6, 2026
Earth Observatory
Landsat 5
Landsat 9
Surface Water
Relentless rains are threatening a lake in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley that has become a key hub in the global flower trade.
Posted June 23, 2026
Earth Observatory
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)
Sea Ice
Snow
Surface Water
Drifting sea ice fragments near Alaska’s Saint Lawrence and Nunivak islands and colorful water around the Yukon Delta heralded the approach of the summer solstice.
Posted June 22, 2026
Droughts
Earth Observatory
Surface Water
Water on Earth
Drought and water releases drained the Arizona reservoir to levels that have led to widespread fish deaths.
Posted June 17, 2026
Earth Observatory
Floods
Landsat 9
Snow
Surface Water
Spring melt along Alaska’s Kuskokwim River caused ice jams and flooding.
Posted May 14, 2026
Earth
Surface Water
SWOT (Surface Water and Ocean Topography)
Water on Earth
Explore how rivers move, change, and sustain life across the planet with SWOT data.
Posted March 23, 2026
Astrobiology
Earth Observatory
Ice & Glaciers
Landsat 9
Planetary Analogs
Surface Water
Water on Earth
Lake Unter-See in Antarctica, sealed beneath thick ice, contains unusually high levels of dissolved oxygen and cone-shaped microbial reefs resembling some of Earth’s oldest fossils.
Posted March 11, 2026
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