Satellite Imagery

A new satellite, currently residing on the International Space Station and scheduled for deployment in January, will measure and map the urban heat island effect of seven U.S. cities.

November 25, 2019 - Arizona Republic

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has been making the most of its celestial perch to illustrate the scale of the fires currently burning in Southern California.

December 8, 2017 - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Penny is an artificial intelligence program that detects affluence from space. It also lets users experiment with how different visual forms affect its perception of an area's wealth.

July 29, 2017 - CityLab

International borders viewed from above show how different patterns of political, urban and agricultural development often collide.

July 18, 2016 - Medium

A history of growth and expansion is visible to the naked eye with photos covering a wide breadth of the planet and just a few short years.

April 24, 2016 - The Washington Post

For the first time, full-color videos of the earth's surface will be made available to the public, with added options for paying customers. The imagery comes from two cameras on the International Space Station.

July 3, 2015 - Quartz

Here's a strange idea that just might work: viewing the planet from afar might offer the perspective necessary to care for and protect our place in the universe.

June 9, 2015 - James Brasuell

Until last week, the seasons never changed on satellite image software. But Mapbox's Landsat-Live program shares clear images of the Earth's surface in near-real time.

March 23, 2015 - CityLab

"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man." -Heraclitus, as quoted by Plato in Cratylus.

February 6, 2015 - Vox

File under tools for the tool kit: Jarrett Walker of Human Transit shares details about Nearmap, an aerial photography tool that serves as a helpful alternative to Google Earth.

December 29, 2014 - Human Transit

West Virginia-based SkyTruth is culling satellite and aerial images to blow the whistle on unreported damage to the environment.

November 24, 2014 - Fusion

A collection of satellite photos reveals the planet's beauty and vulnerability from threats such as desertification, sprawl, and pollution.

November 5, 2013 - Wired

Glenn Fleishman profiles MapBox, whose 30 employees are taking on the big boys in the development of interactive street and satellite maps. The company is working with Charlie Loyd to develop "the most beautiful, clean map ever made."

April 4, 2013 - The Economist

Planners in search of work might want to consider looking in India. As Nate Berg reports, the Indian government is hoping a new technology initiative will catalyze master planning efforts in 7,935 cities and towns across the country.

August 6, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Earlier this week we brought you stunning images of global urban growth as captured by Landsat, NASA's longest running satellite imagery program. These images capture the dramatic changes to some of America's natural landscapes.

August 3, 2012 - Wired

A town in New York has been using satellite imagery from Google Earth to identify illegally-built pools.

August 5, 2010 - Associated Press

Recent earthquake response efforts in Haiti showed how comparing satellite imagery could help to identify physical changes in the damaged country and assist rescue workers. That same sort of imagery could play a similar role for urban planners.

January 18, 2010 - Nate Berg

NASA satellite imagery reveals that two of California's main groundwater sources are being rapidly depleted by agriculture and exurban development.

January 6, 2010 - The Christian Science Monitor

This slideshow form Popular Science takes a step-by-step look at how to detect and uncover ancient buried settlements from satellite imagery.

June 9, 2008 - Popular Science