From record-breaking heatwaves to pandemic-related events, Earth-observing satellites captured some compelling moments on our planet in 2021. A NASA Earth-curated image list showcases some of the beautiful and complex events that occurred on our planet in the past year, and demonstrates how Earth-observing technologies and missions provide valuable information to scientists, government agencies, and people around the world.
(And… there’s a lot of Landsat!)

Influencing Factors: Satellites Help Decipher the Fate of West Antartica
An international team of researchers has combined satellite imagery and climate and ocean records to obtain the most detailed understanding yet of how the West Antarctic Ice Sheet – which contains enough ice to raise global sea level by 3.3 metres – is responding to climate change.