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<\/a><\/figure>\u201cWhen disasters strike, NASA is here to help \u2014 at home and around the world,\u201d said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. \u201cAs challenges from extreme weather grow, so too does the value of NASA\u2019s efforts to provide critical Earth observing data to disaster-response teams on the frontlines. We\u2019ve done so for years. Now, through this system, we expand our capability to help power our U.S. government partners, international partners, and relief organizations across the globe as they take on disasters \u2014 and save lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
The team behind NASA\u2019s Disaster Response Coordination System gathers science, technology, data, and expertise from across the agency and provides it to emergency managers. The new system will be able to provide up-to-date information on fires, earthquakes, landslides, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, and other extreme events.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/figure>\u201cThe risk from climate-related hazards is increasing, making more people vulnerable to extreme events,\u201d said Karen St. Germain, director of NASA\u2019s Earth Science Division. \u201cThis is particularly true for the 10% of the global population living in low-lying coastal regions who are vulnerable to storm surges, waves and tsunamis, and rapid erosion. NASA\u2019s disaster system is designed to deliver trusted, actionable Earth science in ways and means that can be used immediately, to enable effective response to disasters and ultimately help save lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Agencies working with NASA include the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Geological Survey, and the U.S. Agency for International Development \u2014 as well as international organizations such as World Central Kitchen.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this deliberate and structured approach, we can be even more effective in putting Earth science into action,\u201d said Josh Barnes, at NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center<\/a> in Hampton, Virginia. Barnes manages the Disaster Response Coordination System.<\/p>\n When the floods and landslides ravaged parts of Brazil in May, officials from the U.S. Southern Command \u2014 working with the U.S. Space Force and Air Force, and regional partners \u2014 reached out to NASA for Earth-observing data.<\/p>\n NASA\u2019s response included maps of potential power outages from the Black Marble project at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center<\/a> in Greenbelt, Maryland. Disaster response coordinators at NASA Goddard also reviewed high-resolution optical data \u2014 from the Commercial Smallsat Data Acquisition Program<\/a> \u2014 to map more than 4,000 landslides<\/a>.<\/p>\n Response coordinators from NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory<\/a> and the California Institute of Technology, both in Southern California, produced flood extent maps<\/a> using data from the NASA and U.S. Geological Survey Landsat mission and from ESA\u2019s (the European Space Agency) Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite. Response coordinators at NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center<\/a> in Houston also provided photographs of the flooding<\/a> taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station.<\/p>\n The Brazil event is just one of hundreds of responses NASA has supported over the past decade. The team aids decision-making for a wide range of natural hazards and disasters, from hurricanes<\/a> and earthquakes<\/a> to tsunamis<\/a> and oil spills<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cNASA\u2019s Disasters Program advances science for disaster resilience and develops accessible resources to help communities around the world make informed decisions for disaster planning,\u201d said Shanna McClain, manager of NASA\u2019s Disasters Program. \u201cThe new Disaster Response Coordination System significantly expands our efforts to bring the power of Earth science when responding to disasters.\u201d<\/p>\n For more information visit:<\/p>\n https:\/\/disasters.nasa.gov\/response<\/a><\/p>\n By Jacob Reed<\/a><\/em><\/strong>NASA Disasters Team Aiding Brazil<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Building on Previous Work<\/strong><\/h2>\n
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center<\/a>, Greenbelt, Md.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\nExplore More<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n