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Observing the Earth Archive

Observing the Earth

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With the festive season approaching, even Earth-observing satellites are getting into the spirit, capturing a stunning compilation of European cities that resemble stars.

These summer images from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-1 missions showcase different satellite views of Greenland’s west coast.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 21 November 2024 captures the first snow of the season over Denmark and southern Sweden.

A colourful patchwork of agricultural fields is pictured in this radar image captured by Copernicus Sentinel-1 over southeastern Romania.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 13 November 2024 shows the Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano eruption on the island of Flores in southern Indonesia.

These two images acquired by Copernicus Sentinel-2 highlight how the mission can help distinguish between clouds and snow.

Snow returns to Mount Fuji

The icy landscape of Ross Island in Antarctica is featured in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 3 February 2024, during the austral summer.

Spain is suffering its worst flood in decades after torrential rains struck the eastern province of Valencia. These satellite images vividly illustrate the dramatic transformation of the landscape.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image showcases the rich agricultural landscape of northern Ohio in the mid-western of the United States.

Cities in Emilia-Romagna, a region in northern Italy, have been hit by severe flooding after heavy rainfall over the weekend. Flooded areas are visible in this multi-temporal image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission. The comparison uses an image from 8 October (before the floods) and one from 20 October (after the floods). The blue areas highlight the areas impacted by flooding.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia.

Resembling a Martian-like surface, this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows part of the Hardap region in south-central Namibia on the western edge of the Kalahari Desert.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image captures the intricate blend of natural, rural and urban landscapes around Kunshan, a city in eastern China.

This image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission reveals the impact of severe flooding following heavy rain that hit Australia’s Northern Territory in March 2024.

On 20 September, the Copernicus Sentinel-2C satellite captured its first stunning image of the Moon, achieved by rolling the satellite sideways in a unique manoeuvre. Although Sentinel-2C is primarily designed for Earth observation, this image – intended for calibration and cross-mission comparisons – exceeded expectations.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission has snapped a souvenir of the Burning Man festival in the Black Rock desert in Nevada.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image captures algal bloom swirls in the north Adriatic Sea, along the coast of Italy.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2B satellite captured this image over Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana on 2 September, just ahead of the Sentinel-2C launch.

Sentinel-2C in the Vega launch tower

Sentinel-2C fully loaded

Wildfires rage across Athens

This striking high-resolution image offers an in-depth view of central Paris, allowing you to explore and zoom into the city’s most captivating areas in exceptional detail.

The Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission brings us a false-colour radar image of central Ethiopia.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Hainan Strait in southern China.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission captured a rare, cloud-free image over the Portuguese archipelago of Madeira in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Ahead of Asteroid Day, the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Meteor Crater, also known as the Barringer Meteorite Crater.

Saharan dust over the Strait of Messina

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows Adam’s Bridge, a chain of shoals linking India and Sri Lanka.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over a section of Italy’s heel in the southern part of the boot-shaped peninsula.

Ahead of World Ocean Day, the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the west of Grand Bahama Island, in the Bahamas.

Resembling a reddish jellyfish, the Mahajamba Bay in Madagascar is imaged by Copernicus Sentinel-2.

EarthCARE stands tall

Mission control GO for EarthCARE launch

Last look at EarthCARE

Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula is featured in this colourful radar image captured by Copernicus Sentinel-1.

An iceberg roughly the size of the Isle of Wight has broken off the Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica on 20 May.

Captured on 7 May 2024, this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows part of New Zealand’s North Island.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image features salt flats and lakes in southwest Bolivia, near the crest of the Andes Mountains.

This image may resemble the surface of Mars, but it was actually captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission, revealing the stunning terrain of northwest Namibia.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over part of the Seychelles, an island republic in the western Indian Ocean.

Earth from Space: The Mekong Delta

Dubai floods seen from space

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows the delta of the Ebro River on the northeast coast of Spain.

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image features part of Victoria, a state in southeast Australia.

Images from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission show a large dust storm originating from the Sahara Desert that has engulfed skies across the central Mediterranean Basin.

The Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission takes us over northern Brazil, where the Amazon River meets the Atlantic Ocean.

The striking contrast of the diverse landscape in southeast Kenya is featured in this false-colour image captured by Copernicus Sentinel-2.

The historic centre of Vienna, Austria’s capital city, is featured in this image captured on 23 June 2023.

The lush landscape of the island of Ireland and the coasts of Scotland, Wales and England, are pictured in this view from the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission.

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