Category Archives: Remote sensing

Satellite data used to provide life-saving weather forecasts in tropical Africa

Posted on 22 March, 2021 by danaallen

By: Peter Hill Much of the population of tropical Africa are vulnerable to severe weather, often caused by intense storms that can generate heavy rainfall, strong winds and flooding. For instance, thousands of fishermen drown each year in Lake Victoria … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Climate, Rainfall, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Why do clouds matter when we measure surface temperature from space?

Posted on 8 February, 2021 by danaallen

By: Claire Bulgin We can use satellites up in space to measure the surface temperature of the Earth over the land and sea.  Satellites have now been making measurements for 40+ years and these data are really helpful for understanding … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Clouds, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Sea Surface Temperature Climate Data Record

Posted on 25 May, 2020 by danaallen

By: Owen Embury Oceans cover over 70% of the Earth’s surface and knowing its temperature is crucial for understanding both weather and climate. Historically, sea surface temperatures (SSTs) have been measured in situ – from ships and automated buoys – … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Oceans, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Measuring Lake Water Temperature From Space

Posted on 18 May, 2020 by danaallen

by: Laura Carrea ‘Climate change’, and ‘global warming’: these have been two of the most referenced terms in the media in the past few years.  These words sometimes generate controversy and discussion not only on social media or between friends, … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Climate change, earth observation, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Mapping bio-UV products from space

Posted on 6 May, 2019 by danaallen

By: Michael Taylor Solar radiation arriving at the Earth’s surface in the UV part of the spectrum modulates photosynthetically-sensitive life on the land and in the oceans. UV radiation also drives important chemical reaction pathways in the atmosphere that impact … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, earth observation, Remote sensing, Solar radiation | Leave a comment

Why was the sky Orange?

Posted on 10 September, 2018 by hjia

By William Davies I was sitting in my house one morning in October 2017, engrossed in what I was doing. Gradually I noticed that an eerie darkness was smothering the natural light in the room. I stopped and looked outside. … Continue reading →

Posted in Aerosols, Atmospheric chemistry, Atmospheric optics, Climate, Climate modelling, earth observation, Environmental hazards, Numerical modelling, Remote sensing, University of Reading | Leave a comment

Characteristics of cumulus population and microphysical properties observed over Southeast Atlantic

Posted on 28 August, 2018 by hjia

By Yann Blanchard Figure 1. Cumulus in the vicinity of Ascension Island, in a 100 x 100km image (which is close to global climate model spatial resolution) from MODIS onboard AQUA (22 July 2016) Shallow cumulus cover large areas in … Continue reading →

Posted in Aerosols, Atlantic, Atmospheric chemistry, Climate modelling, earth observation, Numerical modelling, Oceans, Remote sensing, Solar radiation, University of Reading | Leave a comment

What’s the secret of coarse dust?

Posted on 18 June, 2018 by hjia

By Claire Ryder Mineral dust aerosol particles are regularly lifted into the atmosphere in arid regions, such as deserts, and transported over thousands of kilometres by the wind, such as from the Sahara desert to the Caribbean Sea, as shown … Continue reading →

Posted in Aerosols, Africa, Atmospheric chemistry, Climate modelling, earth observation, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Hidden in the clouds

Posted on 30 April, 2018 by Stephen Burt

By Nicolas Bellouin Our atmosphere contains varying amounts of tiny liquid or solid particles called aerosols. Some aerosols have a natural origin, like the mineral dust particles that form sandstorms, or the sea spray emitted by breaking waves. Other aerosols … Continue reading →

Posted in Aerosols, Atmospheric chemistry, earth observation, Remote sensing | Leave a comment

Soil Moisture retrieval from satellite SAR imagery

Posted on 19 June, 2017 by Stephen Burt

By Keith Morrison Soil moisture retrieval from satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery uses the knowledge that the signal reflected from a soil is related to its dielectric properties. For a given soil type, variations in dielectric are controlled solely … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, earth observation, Hydrology, land use, Measurements and instrumentation, Numerical modelling, Remote sensing | Tagged | Leave a comment