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LATEST FROM THE GEOBLOGOSPHERE:

Fiery Fall Color in Southern Chile

Elegant Figures | 27 April, 2026
The bright whites of mountain snow, muted browns of the arid plains, and gem-like blues and teals of glacial lakes typically dominate the Patagonian color palette. But for a short time in the austral autumn, temperate deciduous forests add splashes of warm tones. On April 12, 2026, a break in the clouds allowed the Landsat 9 satellite to capture an image of reddish hillsides in the Magallanes region of southern Chile.
Categories: Earth Observatory; Land Cover; Landsat 9; Vegetation;

Seeing Climate Change Through a New Lens

State of the Planet | 27 April, 2026
M.A. in Climate and Society student Erin Frank shoots film around New York City. She says her camera and climate coursework have more in common than she expected....
Categories: Education; Climate and Society students; education news; Kristina G. Douglass; MA in Climate and Society; student profiles;

Actinolite

Oakland Geology | 27 April, 2026
Over the years I've collected a few sightings in Oakland of actinolite, an uncommon-but-not-rare mineral in the Coast Range and Sierra foothills. This is my reference specimen, one I bought at a Russian River rock shop when I asked the owner for something local.
Categories: Other topics;

Days after Artemis II, scientists warn of deep cuts to NASA missions

Planetary Society Weblog | 27 April, 2026
The scientists behind threatened missions speak out....
Categories: None

Snow Is Scarce in the Upper Colorado Basin

Elegant Figures | 26 April, 2026
The through line for the western United States so far in the 2026 water year is simple: there's very little snow. With few exceptions, the mountains of the U.S. West have seen unusually little snow accumulation since October 2025, constituting a widespread snow drought. The lack of mountain snowpack has resource managers on alert going into the warmer months. Meager meltwater can affect hydropower production, agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, and wildland fire risk.
Categories: Earth Observatory; Droughts; Snow;

The Iran conflict and our Wile E. Coyote moment

Resource Insights | 26 April, 2026
I believe the global financial markets are now in what I would call a Wile E. Coyote moment frequently depicted in the old Warner Bros. animated series called "The Road Runner Show."  In this cartoon series a coyote while ...
Categories: None

The overlords of the anti-renewable invasion

Lounge of the Lab Lemming | 26 April, 2026
 Anyone who so much as drives between Australian cities these years will notice that an infestation of anti-renewable ideas has taken hold in pockets of the Australian bush. Alien hate and extremism has infected soils throughout our wide brown l...
Categories: Greenhouse goofiness; Irreproducible idiocy; Political prattling;

Progress 95 Cargo Craft Launches to Resupply Station Crew

Elegant Figures | 25 April, 2026
The unpiloted Roscosmos Progress 95 spacecraft is safely in orbit and headed to the International Space Station following its launch at 6:21 p.m. EDT (3:21 a.m. Baikonur time Sunday, April 26) on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Categories: International Space Station (ISS); ISS Research;

IR STIG PRIMA Seminar, 27 April 2026

Elegant Figures | 25 April, 2026
Jed McKinney (University of Texas, Austin)
Categories: Cosmic Origins Program;

Ad ASTRA Workshop, 1-3 September, 2026 Updates

Elegant Figures | 24 April, 2026
Registration is now open for the Community Science (Ad ASTRA) Workshop to engage the community in defining future large, strategic astrophysics missions. The workshop will take place in Pasadena, CA on 1-3 September 2026. In-person attendance will be limited by venue capacity to approximately 250 people, but virtual participation will also be possible. The hotel room block is available.
Categories: Physics of the Cosmos;

Save NASA Science returns to Capitol Hill

Planetary Society Weblog | 24 April, 2026
The 2026 Day of Action brought more than 130 space advocates from 34 states and the District of Columbia to the nation's capital to advocate for space....
Categories: None

CMB SAG Meeting, 24 April 2026

Elegant Figures | 24 April, 2026
We have a unique opportunity to advocate that a CMB Probe mission be studied in preparation for the Astro2030 Decadal Survey through the ASTRA Initiative. See more details on the ASTRA webpage. NASA is requesting community input on which 4-6 missions (plus far-IR and X-ray flagships) should be studied. NASA plans to announce the selected missions at the January 2027 AAS meeting. In advance of that, there will be the AD ASTRA community workshop in Pasadena, CA, in early September. We need strong advocacy from all of you to emphasize the importance of a CMB mission to NASA.
Categories: Physics of the Cosmos;

An Agricultural Mosaic in Taiwan

Elegant Figures | 23 April, 2026
About 23 million people live in Taiwan, a Pacific island about the size of Maryland. Despite its size, the island produces a tremendous amount of agricultural goods per year--about $18 billion, according to Taiwan's Ministry of Agriculture.
Categories: Agriculture; Earth Observatory; Landsat 9;

Indigenous Herders and Peru’s Melting Glaciers: A Conversation with Anthropologist Allison Caine

State of the Planet | 23 April, 2026
Caine's new book depicts a small community in the glacier-fed Peruvian Highlands as it navigates climate change and social pressures....
Categories: GlacierHub; Andes; climate change; Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory; Peru Glaciers; Robin E. Bell;

The FY 2027 NASA budget request

Planetary Society Weblog | 23 April, 2026
An analysis of the latest President's Budget Request for NASA....
Categories: None

Why Climate Work Is Community Work

State of the Planet | 23 April, 2026
At a recent Climate School event, speaker Memphis Washington discussed the Waterfront Alliance's climate resilience and environmental justice efforts in Coney Island....
Categories: Climate; Education; Natural Disasters; adaptation; coastal flooding; education; environmental justice; Lisa Allyn Dale; NYC; resilience; Saul Vazquez-Pichardo; storms;

Liquid Lifeline: NASA Tech Could Create IV Fluid In Space

Elegant Figures | 23 April, 2026
On every crewed mission, NASA packs pouches of a potentially life-saving liquid in its cargo, known as IV (or intravenous) fluid. A simple mix of sodium chloride and purified water, it can treat up to 30% of medical conditions in flight, resolving things like dehydration, burns, and more.
Categories: Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate; General; Glenn Research Center; Human Space Travel Research; Humans in Space; Johnson Space Center; Marshall Space Flight Center; NASA Centers & Facilities; NASA Directorates; Science & Research; Technology; Technology for Space Travel;

How do things in space get their names?

Planetary Society Weblog | 23 April, 2026
From a lunar feature named after a loved one to a planet named after a god, traditions and rules guide how we name things in space....
Categories: None

Smoke Shrouds Northern Thailand

Elegant Figures | 22 April, 2026
Chiang Mai, Thailand's second-largest city, lies within a network of narrow valleys in the country's northern highlands. Though the historic city is known for panoramic views of the surrounding mountains, clear skies have become less common. In recent decades, smoke has increasingly darkened the skies during the dry season, particularly in March and April.
Categories: Earth Observatory; Air Quality; Human Dimensions; Terra; Wildfires;

Integrated Modeling Virtual Institute (IMVI)

Elegant Figures | 22 April, 2026
Earth (ESD)EarthExploreExplore Earth ScienceAgricultureAir QualityClimate ChangeFreshwaterLife on EarthSevere StormsSnow and IceThe Global OceanScience at WorkEarth Science at WorkTechnology and InnovationPowering BusinessMultimediaImage CollectionsV...
Categories: Earth Science;

Columbia Beautiful Planet 2026

State of the Planet | 22 April, 2026
Once again, we honor Earth Day by sharing some amazing photos celebrating the beauty and magic of our planet, as captured by the Columbia community....
Categories: Earth Sciences; Sustainability; Barnard College; Center for Climate Systems Research; Center for Sustainable Urban Development; CIESIN; Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment; Columbia Climate School in the Green Mountains; Earth Day; GSAPP; Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory; MA in Climate and Society; MPA in Environmental Science and Policy; MS in Sustainability Management; National Center for Disaster Preparedness;

Belts of Green in the Washington Suburbs

Elegant Figures | 21 April, 2026
Beyond the border of Washington, D.C., numerous suburbs spread across Virginia and Maryland. Many are accessible from the Capital Beltway (I-495), the highway that encircles Washington. An astronaut on the International Space Station captured this photo of the beltway's northeast side where it passes through the historic city of Greenbelt, Maryland. 
Categories: Earth Observatory; Goddard Space Flight Center; International Space Station (ISS); Land Use; Urban Development;

Climate School Experts on Congestion Pricing’s First Year

State of the Planet | 21 April, 2026
Three Climate School experts weigh in on the success of New York City's congestion pricing program....
Categories: Climate; Sustainability; Viewpoints; atmospheric science; congestion pricing; Dan Westervelt; Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory; Michael Gerrard; public policy; Sabin Center for Climate Change Law; Steven Cohen; urban design;

A School of Mud Volcano Islands in Azerbaijan

Elegant Figures | 20 April, 2026
Today's story is the answer to the April 2026 puzzler.  
Categories: Earth Observatory; Landsat 8 / LDCM (Landsat Data Continuity Mission); Volcanoes;

Iran Oil, Flowering Plants, India Aquifers

Reporting on a Revolution | 20 April, 2026
Some readings and a podcast from the past few weeks- 
Categories: angiosperms; aquifer; evolution; groundwater; hydrocarbon resources; plate tectonics;

Latest: Are “steady-state” systems ahistorical?

Latest: New paper! Comparing Flood Inundation Map Features and Diagnosing Decision Support Design Challenges

Latest: New Paper: an innovative cycle-based learning approach to teaching with analog sandbox models

Latest: Why I went on strike over civil servant pay

Latest: Going underground #1 – flint and brick

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