NOAA-21, a satellite owned by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has captured some fascinating images of the globe. The clouds, turquoise seas of Cuba and even an agricultural fire in northern India could be identified in the first comprehensive view from the organization’s latest Earth observation satellite.
The image mosaic released by NOAA is the result of several photographs taken by the instrument. Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS, the Visible Infrared Image Radiometer Array, in direct translation) on board the satellite, December 5 and 6, 2022. The instrument collects images in the visible and infrared light spectra, which allows a detailed view of the surface of Earth .
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VIIRS provides scientists with important information about the Earth’s oceans, atmosphere and surface. It is able to detect differences in the color of the ocean, for example, and indicate which factors are responsible for the changes, whether the changes represent a danger to marine life and whether human action is having an impact on the problem. .
Another important data that can be collected by the VIIRS is the monitoring of storms and other meteorological phenomena that can pose risks to the population and the environment.
NOAA-21 is the second operational satellite in a series called Joint Polar Satellite System (Polar Satellite Joint System), which provides pole-to-pole global images. With this equipment, located 824 kilometers from the surface of the Earth, it is possible to observe the entire surface of the Earth twice a day, during its passage through the equator 14 times a day, at 27,360 km/ h.
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