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By NASA
NASA and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) invite media to the official launch celebration of the new SERVIR Central America regional hub, located in Costa Rica, on Tuesday, Dec. 3, at 11 a.m. EST. The event will be hosted by NASA SERVIR Program Manager Daniel Irwin, U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador William H. Duncan, and a representative from El Salvador’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN).
Betzy Hernandez from SERVIR’s Science Coordination Office leads a land cover mapping workshop in Belize. NASA and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) are opening a new SERVIR Central America regional hub, located in Costa Rica, on Tuesday, Dec. 3. NASA Central America is the latest addition to SERVIR’s global network, a NASA and USAID initiative that has been operating in Asia, Africa, and Latin America since 2005.
Implemented by the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE), SERVIR Central America will strengthen climate resilience, sustainable resource management, and biodiversity conservation through satellite data and geospatial technology. The SERVIR Central America hub will support evidence-based decision-making at local, national, and regional levels, strengthening the resilience of more than 40 million people in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions.
The event will be in Spanish with English translation available.
For press access and location details, please RSVP to Belarminda Quijano at belarminda@bqcomunicaciones.com by Monday, Dec. 2. NASA’s media accreditation policy is online. The event will be livestreamed.
For more information on SERVIR, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/servir
Elizabeth Vlock
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov
Lane Figueroa
Huntsville, Alabama
256-544-0034
lane.e.figueroa@nasa.gov
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NASA AI, Open Science Advance Natural Disaster Research and Recovery
Hurricane Ida is pictured as a category 2 storm from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above the Gulf of Mexico. In the foreground is the Canadarm2 robotic arm with Dextre, the fine-tuned robotic hand, attached. NASA By Lauren Perkins
When you think of NASA, disasters such as hurricanes may not be the first thing to come to mind, but several NASA programs are building tools and advancing science to help communities make more informed decisions for disaster planning.
Empowered by NASA’s commitment to open science, the NASA Disasters Program supports disaster risk reduction, response, and recovery. A core element of the Disasters Program is providing trusted, timely, and actionable data to aid organizations actively responding to disasters.
Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana Aug. 21, 2021, as a category 4 hurricane, one of the deadliest and most destructive hurricanes in the continental United States on record. The effects of the storm were widespread, causing devastating damage and affecting the lives of millions of people.
During Hurricane Ida, while first responders and other organizations addressed the storm’s impacts from the ground, the NASA Disasters program was able to provide a multitude of remotely sensed products. Some of the products and models included information on changes in soil moisture, changes in vegetation, precipitation accumulations, flood detection, and nighttime lights to help identify areas of power outages.
Image Before/After The NASA team shared the data with its partners on the NASA Disasters Mapping Portal and began participating in cross-agency coordination calls to determine how to further aid response efforts. To further connect and collaborate using open science efforts, NASA Disasters overlaid publicly uploaded photos on their Damage Proxy Maps to provide situational awareness of on-the-ground conditions before, during, and after the storm.
Immediate post-storm response is critical to saving lives; just as making informed, long- term response decisions are critical to providing equitable recovery solutions for all. One example of how this data can be used is blue tarp detection in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida.
Using artificial intelligence (AI) with NASA satellite images, the Interagency Implementation and Advanced Concepts Team (IMPACT), based at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, conducted a study to detect the number of blue tarps on rooftops in the aftermath of hurricanes, such as Ida, as a way of characterizing the severity of damage in local communities.
An aerial photograph shows damaged roofs from Hurricane Maria in 2017 in Barrio Obrero, Puerto Rico. In the wake of the hurricane, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and United States Army Corps of Engineers distributed 126,000 blue tarps and nearly 60,000 temporary blue roofs to people awaiting repairs on damaged homes. NASA While disasters cannot be avoided altogether, timely and accessible information helps communities worldwide reduce risk, improve response, hasten recovery, and build disaster resilience.
Through an initiative led by NASA’s Office of the Chief Science Data Officer, NASA and IBM are developing five open-source artificial intelligence foundation models trained on NASA’s expansive satellite repositories. This effort will help make NASA’s vast, ever-growing amounts of data more accessible and usable. Leveraging NASA’s AI expertise allows users to make faster, more informed decisions. User applications of the Prithvi Earth Foundation Models could range from identifying flood risks and predicting crop yields to forecasting long range atmospheric weather patterns.
“NASA is dedicated to ensuring that our scientific data are accessible and beneficial to all. Our AI foundation models are scientifically validated and adaptable to new data, designed to maximize efficiency and lower technical barriers. This ensures that even in the face of challenging disasters, response teams can be swift and effective,” said Kevin Murphy, NASA’s chief science data officer. “Through these efforts, we’re not only advancing scientific frontiers, but also delivering tangible societal benefits, providing data that can safeguard lives and improve resilience against future threats.”
Hear directly from some of the data scientists building these AI models, the NASA disaster response team, as well as hurricane hunters that fly directly into these devastating storms on NASA’s Curious Universe podcast.
Learn more about NASA’s AI for Science models at https://science.nasa.gov/artificial-intelligence-science/.
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Last Updated Nov 26, 2024 Related Terms
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Research scientist Alfonso Delgado Bonal makes important discoveries about patterns in cloud movements while thriving within the NASA Goddard family.
Name: Alfonso Delgado Bonal
Formal Job Classification: Research scientist
Organization: Climate and Radiation Laboratory, Science Directorate (Code 613)
Alfonso Delgado Bonal is a research scientist for NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center’s Climate and Radiation Laboratory in Greenbelt, Md.NASA What do you do and what is most interesting about your role here at Goddard?
As a theoretical physicist, I study data from the DSCOVR satellite to analyze daytime variability of cloud properties. We are discovering diurnal (daylight) cloud patterns using a single sensor.
What is your educational background?
I have an undergraduate degree in theoretical physics from the University of Salamanca, Spain. I have a master’s in astrophysics from the University of Valencia, Spain, and a second master’s in space technology from the University of Alcalá, Spain. In 2015, I received a doctorate in theoretical physics from the University of Salamanca.
From 2016–2018, I had a postdoctoral fellowship with the Spanish National Research Agency. From 2018–2020, I had a postdoctoral fellowship at Goddard’s Climate and Radiation Laboratory.
I also have an undergraduate degree in economics from the Spanish Open University and an undergraduate degree in law from the University of La Rioja, Spain. I am considering returning to school for a master’s in law to sit for the bar.
What fascinates you about clouds?
As a child, I remember watching clouds moving. I never questioned whether these clouds moved randomly or in a pattern. One day, Sasha Marshak, my supervisor and one of my mentors, asked me to determine if clouds move randomly or in a pattern.
Clouds have a profound impact on our planet. They regulate the Earth’s energy budget. Some clouds reflect radiation that cools our planet while other clouds trap radiation which warms our planet. Cloud behavior is one of the most important factors in regulating climate change.
What is the data from the DSCOVR satellite telling you?
DSCOVR is the only satellite capturing data that shows the entire sunlit part of the Earth at once. The left part of an image is early morning and the right part of an image is nearing sunset. For the first time, we can see how clouds evolve throughout the entire day. Other satellites only capture either a fixed time or a small region of the planet.
We discovered that clouds do not move randomly, they move in patterns. We measure these patterns in terms of cloud fraction (the amount of sky covered by clouds), cloud height and cloud optical thickness. In general, at noon we have the maximum cloud coverage over land and the minimum cloud coverage over sea. Also, at noon, clouds are generally lower and thicker. There is some predictability in the general pattern of cloud movement.
Coming from Spain, what was the most unusual cultural aspect you had to adjust to when you joined your lab?
When I arrived from Spain, my English was not great and I did not understand the cultural aspects. My first email was from Headquarters thanking the whole NASA family. The idea of a work family was something unfamiliar. To me, family meant blood relatives.
After one or two years, I felt that members of my lab were indeed my family. They really care about me as a person and I feel the same about them. We have parties where we do not talk about work, we talk about ourselves and our families. Our lab has people from all over the world, and we all share the same feeling about being part of the NASA family. We have a family at home and also a family at NASA.
Every time I see Sasha, he always asks about my family and about myself before talking about the work. Lazaros Oreopoulos, Sasha’s supervisor, does the same. They really inspire me.
As your mentors, how did Sasha and Lazaros made you feel welcome?
I came here from a different world. I was doing theoretical physics in Spain but my NASA post doc involved data analysis, which is what I am doing now. Sasha also came from a different county and also had a strong mathematical background. I felt that he understood me and the challenges before me. He made me feel extremely welcome and explained some cultural aspects. He made sure that I understood how the lab worked, introduced me to everyone, and invited my wife and me to dinner at his home. He really made me feel part of the NASA family.
Lazaros strikes the perfect balance between being a respected supervisor and acting like family. He always has a winter party for the entire office where everyone brings in homemade food from their country. Our lab has people from many different countries. Lazaros always checks in with me to see how I am doing. He has created a marvelous place where we all feel like family and do great work.
Lazaros and Sasha gave me a chance when they invited me to join their lab. I do not have words to thank them enough for believing in me when I was just a post doc and for guiding me through my career and, most of all, for their incredible advice about life. They are now both family to me.
What advice have your mentors given you?
Both Sasha and Lazaros taught me creativity. They both always ask questions. Even if a question seems at first impossible to answer, eventually you will develop the tools to answer the questions. It was Sasha who asked me if clouds have random behavior or move in patterns. It has taken me a few years to answer his question and now we are making unexpected and important discoveries about clouds.
What do you do for fun?
Now that I have two young children, my fun now is spending as much time as I can with my wife and children. My wife is a biologist and I have learned a lot from her.
What book are you currently reading?
I love reading. I am rereading the “Iliad,” one of my favorites. My favorite book is “The Little Prince.” I read my children a bedtime story every night and now that they are a little older, sometimes they read one to me.
What is your one big dream?
To see my kids have great lives and be happy.
What is your motto?
“If you’re going to try, go all the way.” —Charles Bukowski
By Elizabeth M. Jarrell
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Conversations With Goddard is a collection of Q&A profiles highlighting the breadth and depth of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center’s talented and diverse workforce. The Conversations have been published twice a month on average since May 2011. Read past editions on Goddard’s “Our People” webpage.
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Last Updated Nov 26, 2024 EditorJamie AdkinsContactRob Garnerrob.garner@nasa.govLocationGoddard Space Flight Center Related Terms
People of Goddard Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) Goddard Space Flight Center People of NASA Explore More
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By NASA
As any urban dweller who has lived through a heat wave knows, a shady tree can make all the difference. But what happens when there’s no shade available?
A recent study in Nature Communications used NASA satellite data to identify a major gap in global resilience to climate change: cities in the Global South have far less green space — and therefore less cooling capacity — than cities in the Global North. The terms Global North and Global South were used in the study to distinguish developed countries (mostly in the Northern Hemisphere) from developing nations (mostly in the Southern Hemisphere).
Cities tend to be hotter than nearby rural areas because of the urban heat island effect. Heat-trapping dark surfaces such as sidewalks, buildings, and roads absorb heat from the Sun’s rays, which raises the temperature of the city. Extreme heat poses serious health threats for urban residents, including dehydration, heat stroke, and even death. Though not a cure-all, greenery provides shade and releases moisture into the air, cooling the surroundings.
“Cities can strategically prioritize developing new green spaces in areas that have less green space,” said Christian Braneon, a climate scientist at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York who was not affiliated with this study. “Satellite data can be really helpful for this.”
The Operational Land Imager (OLI) on the NASA and U.S. Geological Survey’s Landsat 8 satellite captured this natural color image of Sanaa, Yemen, on June 8, 2024. Sanaa, which has a hot, dry climate and little green space, had the second-lowest cooling capacity of 500 cities studied in a paper recently published in the journal Nature Communications. Wanmei Liang, NASA Earth Observatory An international team of researchers led by Yuxiang Li, a doctoral student at Nanjing University, analyzed the 500 largest cities in the world to compare their cooling capacities. They used data from the Landsat 8 satellite, jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey, to determine how effective green space was at cooling each city.
First, they calculated the average land surface temperature for the hottest month of 2018 for each city, as well as the average of the hottest months from 2017 to 2019. Next, the researchers used a metric called the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to map how much green space each city had. The NDVI relies on the fact that healthy vegetation absorbs red light and reflects infrared light: the ratio of these wavelengths can show the density of healthy vegetation in a given satellite image.
Researchers found that cities in the Global South have just 70% of the greenery-related cooling capacity of cities in the Global North. The green spaces in an average Global South city cool the temperature by about 4.5 F (2.5 C). In an average Global North city, that cooling capacity is 6.5 F (3.6 C). This compounds an existing problem: cities in the South tend to be at lower latitudes (that is, nearer to the Equator), which are predicted to see more heat extremes in the coming years.
“It’s already clear that Global South countries will be impacted by heat waves, rising temperatures, and climatic extremes more than their Global North counterparts,” said Chi Xu, a professor of ecology at Nanjing University and a co-author of the study. The Global South has less capacity to adapt to heat because air conditioning is less common and power outages are more frequent.
Why do cities in the Global South struggle to stay cool? Cities in the Global South tend to have less green space than cities in the Global North. This mirrors studies of the disparities within cities, sometimes referred to as the “luxury effect”: wealthier neighborhoods tend to have more green space than poorer neighborhoods. “Wealthier cities also have more urban green spaces than the poorest cities,” Chi said.
It’s unlikely that urban planners can close the gap between the study’s worst-performing city (Mogadishu, Somalia) and the best-performing one (Charlotte, North Carolina).
Mogadishu is a dense city with a dry climate that limits vegetation growth. Still, there’s a lot that each city can learn from its neighbors. Within a given region, the researchers identified the city with the greatest cooling capacity and used that as a goal. They calculated the difference between the best-performing city in the region and every city nearby to get the potential additional cooling capacity. They found that cities’ average cooling capacity could be increased substantially — to as much as 18 F (10 C) — by systematically increasing green space quantity and quality.
“How you utilize green space is really going to vary depending on the climate and the urban environment you’re focused on,” said Braneon, whose research at NASA focuses on climate change and urban planning.
Greener cities in the U.S. and Canada have lower population densities. However, fewer people per square mile isn’t necessarily good for the environment: residents in low-density cities rely more on cars, and their houses tend to be bigger and less efficient. Braneon noted that there’s a suite of solutions beyond just planting trees or designating parks: Cities can increase cooling capacity by creating water bodies, seeding green roofs, and painting roofs or pavement lighter colors to reflect more light.
With a global study like this, urban planners can compare strategies for cities within the same region or with similar densities. “For newly urbanized areas that aren’t completely built out, there’s a lot of room to still change the design,” Braneon said.
By Madeleine Gregory
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
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Last Updated Nov 26, 2024 Editor Rob Garner Contact Rob Garner rob.garner@nasa.gov Location Goddard Space Flight Center Related Terms
Climate Change Earth Goddard Institute for Space Studies Goddard Space Flight Center Landsat Landsat 8 / LDCM (Landsat Data Continuity Mission) View the full article
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By NASA
1 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
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The Canadarm2 removes materials science samples from the Kibo laboratory module's airlock. NASA The Materials ISS Experiment Flight Facility mounted on the outside of the International Space Station allows researchers to test the performance and durability of materials and devices. This is done by exposing items of interest to everything that makes the space environment harsh, including radiation, highly reactive atomic oxygen, microgravity, and extreme temperatures.
Currently, one suite on the platform holds MISSE-20-Commercial, an investigation conducting 12 experiments from different research teams. Among MISSE-20-Commercial is the Space Entanglement and Annealing Quantum Experiment (SEAQUE) which tests two technologies that could advance the field of quantum communications. The first technology is a novel method to transmit quantum data. This method could make way for a scalable quantum information network and provide the foundation of quantum cloud computing, a technology that holds the promise of operating millions of times faster than conventional computers. SEAQUE will also validate technology to “self-heal” its sensitive detectors against radiation damage using laser annealing, prolonging the life of these quantum tools in a space environment.
Diana Garcia
International Space Station Research Communications Team
Johnson Space Center
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