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Images

Peruse our selection of remote sensing and Earth science imagery below.

Filter Total Items: 863
Color-coded image of United States's Land Cover
NLCD 1992
NLCD 1992
NLCD 1992

The first National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD), based on Landsat 5 data, is completed and available for distribution in 2000.

The first National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD), based on Landsat 5 data, is completed and available for distribution in 2000.

A satellite image of a crater
1991 Landsat Image of the Batagaika Crater
1991 Landsat Image of the Batagaika Crater
1991 Landsat Image of the Batagaika Crater

Sometimes described as resembling a stingray or a tadpole, the Batagaika Crater is a widening chasm in Siberia and the world’s largest permafrost crater.

Sometimes described as resembling a stingray or a tadpole, the Batagaika Crater is a widening chasm in Siberia and the world’s largest permafrost crater.

color photo
Five Millionth Scene
Five Millionth Scene
Five Millionth Scene

The Landsat Global Archive Consolidation initiative has retrieved and ingested its 5 millionth image since it began in 2010. The data came from the Riyadh Ground Station in Saudi Arabia and was acquired by Landsat 5 on April 16, 1989. It shows an area over Bahrain, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

The Landsat Global Archive Consolidation initiative has retrieved and ingested its 5 millionth image since it began in 2010. The data came from the Riyadh Ground Station in Saudi Arabia and was acquired by Landsat 5 on April 16, 1989. It shows an area over Bahrain, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

Labeled satellite image of Chernobyl after accident
1986 Landsat 5 image of Chernobyl after the
1986 Landsat 5 image of Chernobyl after the
1986 Landsat 5 image of Chernobyl after the

A Landsat 5 image of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant site in Ukraine on April 29, 1986, three days after the accident, shows no warmth in the cooling pond.

A Landsat 5 image of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant site in Ukraine on April 29, 1986, three days after the accident, shows no warmth in the cooling pond.

Satellite image with various shades of green, pink and blue with text labels in white
1985 Landsat 5 image of Day County, SD
1985 Landsat 5 image of Day County, SD
1985 Landsat 5 image of Day County, SD

A false color Landsat 5 image from July 22, 1985, of Waubay Lake and Bitter Lake in Day County, South Dakota.

Earth As Art image Algerian Abstract
Algerian Abstract
Algerian Abstract
Algerian Abstract

What look like pale yellow paint streaks slashing through a mosaic of mottled colors are ridges of wind-blown sand that make up Erg Iguidi, an area of ever-shifting sand dunes extending from Algeria into Mauritania in northwestern Africa.

What look like pale yellow paint streaks slashing through a mosaic of mottled colors are ridges of wind-blown sand that make up Erg Iguidi, an area of ever-shifting sand dunes extending from Algeria into Mauritania in northwestern Africa.

Earth As Art image Sierra de Velasco
Sierra de Velasco
Sierra de Velasco
Sierra de Velasco

Shimmering blues and greens accentuate the textures of the Sierra de Velasco Mountains of northern Argentina. The urban area (pinkish circle) near the lower left part of the mountain range is La Rioja, the capital of the province of La Rioja.

Shimmering blues and greens accentuate the textures of the Sierra de Velasco Mountains of northern Argentina. The urban area (pinkish circle) near the lower left part of the mountain range is La Rioja, the capital of the province of La Rioja.

Mount Elgon
Mount Elgon
Mount Elgon
Mount Elgon

Clouds encircle the lofty rim of Africa's Mount Elgon, a huge, long-extinct volcano on the border between Uganda and Kenya. The solitary volcano has one of the world's largest intact calderas, a cauldron-like central depression.

Clouds encircle the lofty rim of Africa's Mount Elgon, a huge, long-extinct volcano on the border between Uganda and Kenya. The solitary volcano has one of the world's largest intact calderas, a cauldron-like central depression.

Landsat 4 First Light Image over western Lake Erie
Landsat 4 First Light Image over western Lake Erie
Landsat 4 First Light Image over western Lake Erie
Landsat 4 First Light Image over western Lake Erie

Landsat 4's first light image captured eastern Lake Erie, and the cities of Toledo, Detroit, and Windsor on July 25, 1982. Although the Landsat program had been collecting images of the Earth since 1972, this was the first time that the data could be depicted as a natural color image due to the new Thematic Mapper sensor onboard Landsat 4.

Landsat 4's first light image captured eastern Lake Erie, and the cities of Toledo, Detroit, and Windsor on July 25, 1982. Although the Landsat program had been collecting images of the Earth since 1972, this was the first time that the data could be depicted as a natural color image due to the new Thematic Mapper sensor onboard Landsat 4.

Landsat 4 First Light Image of Detroit
Landsat 4 First Light Image of Detroit
Landsat 4 First Light Image of Detroit
Landsat 4 First Light Image of Detroit

The first Landsat 4 image was acquired over western Lake Erie on July 25, 1982, just 9 days after launch. This image shows the Detroit River dividing the metropolitan areas of Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario while acting as a strait between Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair.

The first Landsat 4 image was acquired over western Lake Erie on July 25, 1982, just 9 days after launch. This image shows the Detroit River dividing the metropolitan areas of Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario while acting as a strait between Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair.

Mount St. Helens after the 1980 eruption
Mount St. Helens after the 1980 eruption
Mount St. Helens after the 1980 eruption
Mount St. Helens after the 1980 eruption

This photo shows Mount St. Helens in 1982, 2 years after the volcano erupted on May 18, 1980. Spirit Lake is in the foreground. 

Compare this picture to one taken in 1980 before the eruption to see the changes made to the landscape.  

This photo shows Mount St. Helens in 1982, 2 years after the volcano erupted on May 18, 1980. Spirit Lake is in the foreground. 

Compare this picture to one taken in 1980 before the eruption to see the changes made to the landscape.  

picture of Mt. Saint Helens before the 1980 eruption
Mount St. Helens Before the 1980 Eruption
Mount St. Helens Before the 1980 Eruption
Mount St. Helens Before the 1980 Eruption

This photo shows Mount St. Helens before the volcano erupted on May 18, 1980. Spirit Lake is in the foreground. 

Compare this picture to one taken in 1982 to see the changes made by the eruption. 

This photo shows Mount St. Helens before the volcano erupted on May 18, 1980. Spirit Lake is in the foreground. 

Compare this picture to one taken in 1982 to see the changes made by the eruption. 

Group of men looking at a map
EROS Training in the Badlands
EROS Training in the Badlands
EROS Training in the Badlands

USGS provides remote sensing science training for visitors. This is a field trip to Badlands National Park.

Large group of individuals standing near a rocky wall of a hill
EROS Training in the Black Hills 1979
EROS Training in the Black Hills 1979
EROS Training in the Black Hills 1979

USGS provides remote sensing science training for visitors in 1979.

Captured with an Olympus Digital Camera.

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