Early Spring 3.20.2014 Live Shots

Related pages

• Related

  • 
    ID: 4154 Visualization

    Early Spring Frost-Free Regions: Comparing 1950s and 2010s

    March 19th, 2014
    (updated Aug. 25th, 2023)

    These visualizations show observational evidence that the growing season (climatalogical spring) is occurring earlier in the northen hemisphere. Scientists analyze recorded ground temperatures throughout each season and determine the earliest frost-free dates for each location every year. The earliest frost-free date in a growing season often does not correspond to the northern hemisphere's Spring equinox (about March 20), which is the astronomical first day of Spring.The visualziations below show frost-free regions for March 20 and April 20. The regions colored in light green are the frost-free regions averaged from 1950 through 1952. The darker green regions that fade on are the additional areas covered by the frost-free regions averaged from 2009 through 2011. More area is frost-free in the each of the 2009-2011 averages compared to the 1950-1952 averages. ||

    Read more
  • 
    ID: 4152 Visualization

    Global Temperature Anomalies from January 2014

    March 19th, 2014
    (updated May 3rd, 2023)

    Residents of the eastern United States know that the temperature was colder then the average temperature. This visual of the GISTEMP anomalies for January of 2014 show the United States and then zooms out to show the global picture. Temperature anomalies indicate how much warmer or colder it is than normal for a particular place and time. For the GISS analysis, normal always means the average over the 30-year period 1951-1980 for that place and time of year. For more information on the GISTEMP, see the GISTEMP analysis website located at: http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/ ||

    Read more
  • 
    ID: 4055 Visualization

    Seasonal Vegetation and Snow Change

    March 19th, 2013
    (updated May 3rd, 2023)

    To determine the density of green on a patch of land, researchers must observe the wavelengths of visible and near-infrared sunlight reflected by the plants. The pigment in plant leaves, chlorophyll, strongly absorbs visible light (from 0.4 um - 0.7 um). Vegetation strongly reflects near-infrared light (from 0.7 -1.0 um). The more healthy leaves a plant has, the more the the visible light will be absorbed and the near-infrared will be reflected. In this animation, dark green indicates dense, healthy vegetation, whereas beige areas represent bare soil. Snow from the MODIS instruments is overlaid on top. ||

    Read more