Documenting our warming planet

Google Earth has added a new video feature that draws upon 37 years of satellite imagery to illustrate how climate change has affected glaciers, forests, cities, and other places around the world. The feature draws on 24 million satellite images taken every year from 1984 to 2020 and provided by NASA, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the European Union to document human impacts on the environment. “This is amazing,” said Cornell climate scientist Natalie Mahowald, adding, “I would not be surprised if this one bit of software changes many people’s minds.”