Crew Earth Observations (CEO)
Research Area: Earth Remote Sensing
Expedition(s): 1-ongoing
Principal Investigator(s): ● Susan Runco, Johnson Space Center, Houston,
Texas
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
In Crew Earth Observations (CEO), the crew on the International Space Station (ISS) photograph
natural and human-made events on Earth. The photographs record the Earth's surface changes
over time, along with dynamic events such as storms, floods, fires, and volcanic eruptions.
These images provide researchers on Earth with key data to understand the planet from the
perspective of the low-Earth Orbit.
EARTH BENEFITS
Earth observations from human
spaceflight serve as a unique
record of environmental changes
on Earth. These photographs
provide valuable information that
allows a better understanding of
the planet from many
perspectives. Short- and long-term
events documented include
hurricanes, floods, fires, volcanic
eruptions, climate change,
agricultural development, forest
fires, urban sprawl, and pollution.
SPACE BENEFITS
The imagery captured by
astronauts during long-duration
missions provide insight for planetary surveys within our solar system and anomalies that occur
in low-Earth orbit.
RESULTS
ISS provides a unique opportunity to capture a variety of sites on Earth by providing repeated
overflight passes of the Earth with different lighting and viewing angles. Through CEO, ISS crew
members share their view of the Earth with the public and take pictures of some of the most
dramatic examples of change on the Earth's surface. These sites have included major deltas in
South and East Asia, coral reefs, cities, alpine glaciers, volcanoes, and features on Earth, such as
impact craters, that are analogs to structures on other planets.
An Expedition 20 crew member photographed Sarychev Peak
Volcano, in Russia’s Kuril Islands, during the early stages of eruption
on June 12, 2009. This detailed photograph is exciting to
volcanologists because it captures several phenomena that occur
during the earliest stages of an explosive volcanic eruption.