National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

FRESH WATER
Satellites See Everything from
www.nasa.gov Raindrops to Great Lakes
A publication from NASAs Earth Observatory earthobservatory.nasa.gov
 n people

Fresh ater
st 23 millio om
ad has lo cities fr
Lake Me ns living in o
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October 2016
d p o o ls and c
ould Ring Around
siz e
e globe. the Reservoir
EO Kids is aliated with NASAs Earth circle th
Observatory and written for audiences
aged 9 to 14. It is published with the
support from NASAs Landsat, Terra,
and Aqua missions.

Fresh Water is the premiere issue e

6 Sipping Snow
in the Sierras
ikal is th
of EO Kids and is available for download at Lake Ba
deepest
worlds
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/eokids
more
lake. At Water, Water,
EO Kids Team:

Ginger Butcher, Editor in Chief

Tassia Owen, Managing Editor
than 1,6
(5,000 fe
00 mete
et) deep
rs
, 8 Everywhere!
h is
Mike Carlowicz, Associate Editor its dept
equal to
Autumn Burdick, Senior Science Writer
almost
bined
10
Harman Smith, Creative Director
the com Data Viz
of the
Caroline ODriscoll, Graphic Design
Kristen Weaver, Science Writer and heights How Thick is Greenlands Ice?
State
Education Specialist Empire
in New
Building
Dorian Janney, Science Writer and
Education Specialist y, the
Valerie Casasanto, Science Writer York Cit
wer in
Abigail Nastan, Science Writer
Mike Taylor, Data Visualizer
Kevin Ward, Earth Observatory Group Manager
Eiel To
Paris, an
d the
alifa
11 DIY Science
The Science of Snowmelt
Burj Kh i.
in Duba
Image credits: building
Data Detective
12
Image credits: Cover: Blue Marble, NASAs
Earth Observatory; Wave, Fotolia; Page 3: Earth The Case of the
with tap, Fotolia; Pages 4-5: Hoover Dam,
Fotolia; Lake Mead time series, Landsat/Mike Appearing Lake
Taylor; Las Vegas, Fotolia; Pages 6-7: Sierra
Nevada mountains, Terra MODIS/Earth
ow?
13
Observatory; Black bear, Fotolia; Page 8-9:
Siberian Coast, Landsat-5/NASAs Earth fore st with sn Maker Corner
A rain pic
Observatory; Saudi Arabia, Landsat-8/NASAs R id ge in Olym Make a Model Aquifer
ne
Earth Observatory; Lake Baikal, Aqua-MODIS/ Hurrica re ceives u
p
l P a rk
NASAs Earth Observatory, MODIS Land Rapid Nationa s (35 feet
) of
e te r
Response Team, NASA/GSFC; Greenland,
to 10.7 m
r year. Notes from the Field
14
NASA/Norman Kuring; Clouds, Aqua MODIS/
Je Schmaltz; Page 10: Greenland map, ICESat/ snow pe
Jack Saba, NASA Goddard; Page 11: Experiment Soaking up Science
photos, Autumn Burdick; Page 12: Karkeh in the Rainforest
River, Landsat/Mike Taylor; Page 13: Aquifer
and Planter illustrations, Ginger Butcher; Page

15
14-15: Olympex team, Mark Harris; US Map,
Mike Taylor; Doppler, Joe Zagrodnik; Lake Answers
Michigan, NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team

2 3
 ou n d
r
A River Runs Through It more of the water that was saved in The thin,

g A es e rvoir
Lake Mead is part of the Colorado the reservoir. Heat is also a problem. tan line

R
River watershed. Most of the water in Record high temperatures in the area around the

n he
lake looks

i
the lake comes from snow melting in are causing the fresh water to evaporate.
like a dirt

R t
Lake Mead is the largest freshwater
reservoir in the United States. When
full, it can hold 36 trillion liters
(9.3 trillion gallons) of water. But it
has been a long time since Lake Mead
has held that much water, and it looks
very different today than it did 32
years ago. Looking down from space,
a thin tan line traces the shore of the
lake, and the line is getting thicker.
What is happening?
Got Water?
People in the southwestern United
States live in a dry climate and need
to store water to survive. Lake
Mead was created to provide a
reservoira freshwater lake that
stores a large supply of water. For
decades, Lake Mead has met the
needs of millions of people in
Nevada, Arizona, and California
who rely on this water to drink,
water their lawns, and grow their
food. But what is different today?
the Rocky Mountains and flowing
down the hills into the river. The river Shrinking Shoreline ring around
This is not the first drought to shrink a tub after a
also collects rainfall that runs off the
bath, except
land. But lately, there has been less Lake Mead. Droughts in the 1950s and
this ring is
snow and rain falling in the mountains 1960s increased the use of water from
sand and
and less water in the river. For the the lake. But in 2016, the lake reached
soil that had
past 16 years, the reservoir has not a record low. The last time Lake Mead been under
been refilling like it did in the past. was this low was in 1937, when the water. Over
reservoir was first filling up. By July time, this
Double Hitter 2016, Lake Mead was only 36 percent bathtub
Drought and Heat full, and the water level had dropped ring has
The southwestern United States has almost 42 meters (138 feet) from the grown wider
received less rainfall than normal since average level in 1984. From space, this as the lake
the year 2000. This means that people, shrinking shoreline looks like a large has grown
particularly farmers, have had to use bathtub ring. G. Butcher and T. Owen smaller.

Lake Mead was formed in 1936 when the Hoover Dam Las Vegas Valley gets about
was built on the Colorado River. It took ve years for the 90 percent of its water from
river to ll this reservoir. the Lake Mead reservoir.

1984 1990 2000 2016

1980 1990 2000 2010

These NASA Landsat satellite images show how Lake Mead has changed. The last image shows the lake in 2016, when water storage reached a record low.
The rst image shows the lake nearly full in 1984.
4 5
 n g S N O W gradually fills the aquifers and

pi A S
reservoirs. Snowmelt adds fresh

sip R R
E
water to aquifers and reservoirs even

SI
during dry seasons. When there is

he
less snow covering the mountains,

in t there may not be enough snowmelt

to replenish aquifers and reservoirs
through Californias dry summers.
2015 was a warm and dry

W
winter. The lack of snow and rain
hen people think caused California to restrict the
of water, they amount of water people could
dont usually think use in the summer of 2015.
of snow. But snow is water. Some farms in southern
Some of the water you drink California had to use water
may even have been snow. from Lake Mead (in Nevada) to
Snow is made up of tiny, make up for the lack of water in
frozen water crystals and air. their reservoirs. Read more in
When snow melts, the water Ring Around the Reservoir
flows downhill and accumulates on page 4.
in streams, rivers, and The winter of 2016 was
underground aquifers. Some of better, with more snow and
this snowmelt ends up in rain in parts of California
reservoirs, where it is stored for due to El Nio. Snowmelt in
people to use.
c h 2 0 1 5 2016 did a lot to pay back
In the western United States, Mar the water supply, but after
nearly 75 percent of the freshwater years of drought, there is
supply comes from snowmelt stored h still less water in
in Marc
00 6 lifornia
March 2
in reservoirs. A reservoir is like a a o f C a f th e
Nevad ore o Californias reservoirs than
w the Sierra n o w covers m e r,
bank account or piggy bank. Water ages s ho
he whit e s
no w y w
in t in the past.
se s a tellite im 5. Notice how t s a w e t a nd s
is taken out of the bank in the The
ch 201 20 0 6 w a
tion. T. Owen
20 0 6 a nd M a r in 2015.
n ccumula
a
summer and fall, and nature fills it a in s in 20 06 tha w ith li t tle snow
mount nd d r y
back up in the winter and spring. 2 0 15 w a s hot a
but
The larger problem is that less
water is being added to the reservoirs
and aquifers. As snow melts it
Aquifer: Wildlife and Water
Underground layer of rock, People are not the only ones who depend on water. The Sierra Nevada
sand, or gravel that water is home to black bears. Recent droughts have diminished the animals
can travel through or that natural food sources, such as acorns and berries. Bears have been
contains water. forced to travel elsewhere to nd food and water, sometimes into cities.

6 7
 4. Ice: About 2/3 of all fresh water
is frozen in glaciers and other forms
1. Permafrost: A little over 2/3 of the worlds surface and of ice. A glacier is made up of dense
other fresh water is found in ground ice and permafrost: snow that accumulates faster than
water frozen into the soil. We nd a lot of permafrost in it melts. These thick blocks of ice
such places as Alaska and Siberia. The melting and can last for centuries. Two such icy
refreezing of permafrost causes pockmarks in the places are Greenland (pictured) and
landscape and creates ponds and marshes, as seen in this Antarctica. By the way, Greenland
image of the Siberian coast. is more white than green.

2. Groundwater:
Experiencing a drought?
Live in a desert? There is 5. Atmosphere: Water exists in our atmosphere and
not a lot of water in a desert. falls to Earth as precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, and
Farmers in Saudi Arabia tap hail). We see water vapor as clouds, mist, and fog,
into aquifers deep below the such as these clouds over the Amazon rainforest.
sandy surface to access
groundwater to water their
plants. Pictured here are
aquifer-fed circular

W
farm elds.

ter, ater Planet. Blue Marble. Face it: Earth is known for its water. In fact, nearly

a
three-quarters of our planet is covered with water. That is a lot, especially

W
3. Surface Water: when we consider that we spend most of our time on dry land. Did you know
4 About 1/5 of the worlds that only 2.5 percent of the water on Earth is fresh? The rest a whopping 97.5 percent
1
surface and other fresh is salty and undrinkable. All of the seven billion people on the planet (not to mention the

Water
3
water is stored in lakes. bears, birds, bullfrogs, and bugs) drink that little bit of fresh water. Our crops and forests
And nearly 1/5 of that is and flowers need water too.
2
in Russias Lake Baikal.

re!
5
Where do we find fresh water on Earth and how do we monitor it? Satellites provide us

he
with views of fresh water from space. These images show us just some of the ways fresh

yw
water is stored on and in the Earth. A. Burdick

Ever Salty
39 cups = Ocean
Water
00.3% Living Things
03.0% Atmosphere
27.8% Liquid Surface
68.7% Icecaps and Glaciers
If all the Water: Lakes, Rivers,
Swamps, Marshes,
Earths water
and Soil Moisture
t into 40 Fresh 30.1% Groundwater
cups, then ... 1 cup = Water 68.9% Ground Ice
1.2% Surface and Other Fresh Water and Permafrost
8 9
Data Viz
Most of Earths fresh water is
How Thick is Greenlands Ice?
DIY Science
Snowmelt Science
locked up in ice. After the
Antarctic ice sheet, the
Greenland ice sheet is the
second largest ice body on the
Earth. Ice sheets form in areas When snow melts, it turns into water. Snow in the
where the snow that falls in Sierra Nevada mountains becomes the water that people
winter does not melt entirely in drink when it melts and fills reservoirs and aquifers.
the summer. Over thousands But how much water does snow produce? T. Owen
Step 1a: Finely cr
of years, the layers of snow pile ush ice in a blen
der
up, growing thicker and denser to make the snow
sample.
as the weight of new snow and
What you need:
ice compresses the older layers.
1. Ice cubes or snow
2. Clear plastic cup
Instructions: The numbers 3. Blender or a plastic bag and hammer
in each square represent ice
4. Marker
thickness in kilometers.
Color in the scale from
purple to light green, then Experiment:
ll in the squares in the grid 1. Collect snow. Or crush ice to make snow.
using the same color scale. 2. Scoop your snow into the cup until it is full.
Ice Thickness 3. Measure and mark the top of the snow level
in Kilometers with a marker. Then mark where you think the lp from an adult,
Step 1b: Or, with he
Question: bag with a hammer
.
Purple water level will be once the snow melts. crush ice in a plastic
Where is 2.9 - 3.4 km 4. Wait for the snow to melt.
the ice the 5. Compare the water level with where you
Dark Blue
thickest? thought the water level would be.
2.3 - 2.8 km
Why?
Light Blue
Answer on Conclude:
1.6 - 2.2 km
page 15 How close were you? Did the water take up more,
Light Green
less, or the same amount of space as the snow?
0.1 - 1.5 km
If more or less, how much more or less? Why do
you think this happened? Find out why in Snowmelt
Science Answers on page 15. Step 2: M
easure a
nd mark
the snow the heig
t before it ht of
Sa melts.
e ICE n to
th issio n
re
from xt m Lear
e e. ov
You Do the Math!
ap a the n hs ic sa.g
sm is rt .na In December 2015, an average of 45.7 cm (18 inches) Note: Wetter snow, such as sleet, will
r thi Sat-2 ng Ea .gsfc
fo ICE sur i 2 of snow covered the Sierra Nevada mountains. produce more water than drier snow.
ta . at-
Da llite mea //ices
e : V. Casasanto and G. Butcher If 25.4 cm (10 inches) of snow makes 2.54 cm (1 inch)
sat tinue http
n
co re a t: of water on average, how many centimeters (or Check your answers in Snowmelt
mo inches) of water did 45.7 cm (18 inches) of snow make? Science Answers on page 15.

10 11
 Data Detective Maker Corner
ppearing Lake
The Case of the A Make a Model Aquifer!
Some of Earths fresh water is stored in
underground reservoirs called aquifers. Rain
and snowmelt seep into the ground until it reaches a
layer of rock or soil that can hold water. The water is
stored in the spaces between rock or soil particles
until it is pumped back to the surface through a well.
G. Butcher and K. Weaver

2 3 4 5 What you need:

0 1
One 2-liter plastic bottle (without the cap)
Kilometers
Clean spray bottle nozzle with straw attached
Soil, sand, pebbles, and rocks
Marbles or glass vase gems
A piece of fabric or cheesecloth
This satellite
Scissors
image from 1990
shows the Kark
heh Small watering can or cup
sn ak in g th rough Water and ice
River
the dry, rugged Make This!
n.
landscape of Ira Make your model:
You can use the same idea from your model
1. Cut the bottle in half and ll the bottom
e
aquifer to create a self-watering planter.
In 2006, after th with seven to ten centimeters (three to four
as
Karkheh Dam w inches) of marbles.
riv er Place 3 to 4 marbles
completed, the 2. Insert the spray nozzle so the straw reaches
by a
valley was lled all the way to the bottom between the marbles. in a plastic cup and
la ke .

sprawling blue
Then place the top portion of the bottle enough water to
This is no magic trick. This is what capturing 5.9 billion cubic meters (7.7 billion upside-down into the bottom half of the bottle. cover the marbles.
cubic yards) of water looks like from space. Satellite images are used to monitor 3. Fill the top half of the bottle in layers. Start Thread a couple
changes on Earths surface over time. Scientists can compare images to calculate with a piece of cheesecloth to cover the opening, pieces of string
how much has changed. In the case of the Karkheh Dam, scientists can calculate then layer rocks, sand, pebbles, more sand, and
Be a data detective and through the bottom
how much of the landscape is covered with water after a dam is built. nally soil. Fill to about two inches from the top.
nd out how much of of a second cup then
4. Pour water from the watering can on top of
the Karkheh Valley is
The dam on Irans Karkheh River was completed in 2001. It was designed to the soil (like rainfall). Put ice or crushed ice on ll with potting soil
now covered with and a plant. The
capture enough fresh water to irrigate a patch of farmland the size of Rhode top of the soil (like snow) and let it melt.
water. Each square on
Island and to produce electricity for almost 400,000 homes that is one home 5. The water will collect between the marbles string will wick the
this grid equals one
for every person who lives in Cleveland, Ohio. T. Owen (like an aquifer). Once the aquifer is full, pump water up into the soil
square kilometer.
out the water using the spray nozzle (like a well). and water your plant.

Go further:
1. What is the total area of each satellite image (1 square = 1 km2)? Questions

During the 2012-2016 drought in California, water was

2. How many square kilometers of the 1990 image contained river water?
Answers pumped out of underground aquifers faster than rain
3. How many square kilometers of the 2006 image is covered by the lake?
and snow could rell them. Check out the Sipping
4. How much of the satellite image has changed? Answers are
Snow in the Sierras story to learn more.
on page 15.
12 13
 Notes from the Field The
observ
D

system
o
e
p
d
p
p
le
r
s as th
c h e
r On W
e

d
cipitat
ey
t h
heels
ion

e moun
tains.
approa

n ce in t h e R a info re st
Soaking up Scie
Precipitationrain, snow, and icegives us
the fresh water we need to survive. Scientists
can measure precipitation from the ground
using rain gauges, radar, and other weather
instruments. But they cant make such
measurements all over the planet because they
cannot get to many remote places. Over 70
percent of Earth is covered by oceans, and the
only reliable way to measure how much
precipitation falls there is to do it from space.
Satellites can give us a big picture of where,
when, and how much precipitation is falling
around the world. The Global Precipitation
Measurement (GPM) mission measures how
much precipitation is falling around the world,
and it gives us an updated amount every three
hours! But we need scientists to compare the
measurements from the satellite with
measurements from the ground to verify the
accuracy of the satellites data.
The OLYMPEX team preparing to
hike with their equipment into
the park.
14
A group of scientists have been working
together to do just that in Washington. In the
winter of 2015-2016, scientists with OLYMPEX
(the Olympic Mountains Experiment) carefully
measured different forms of rain, snow, and sleet
that fell over the Pacific Ocean and across the
Olympic Peninsula and Olympic Mountains.
This region gets 250 to 450 centimeters
(100 to 180 inches) of precipitation a year,
making it one of the few rainforests outside
of the tropics. That made it an ideal location to
see how accurately the satellite could measure
different types of precipitation.
The team used many types of instruments on
the ground, including rain gauges, advanced
weather radars, and weather balloons. In some
locations, they had to hike in and use mules to
help carry equipment because there werent
any roads!
Joe Zagrodnik, a graduate student from the
University of Washington, had some exciting
adventures as he worked to set up the
instruments. One of the
storms created a mudslide
that washed out the road,
and Joe and others needed
picks and shovels to clear
the debris so they could
To nd out more, you can
visit these websites:
https://pmm.nasa.gov/
olympex
http://go.nasa.gov/1YqiM0K
continue on their way! In another
storm, Joe had to cross a river with water up to
his knees. It was also hard to protect the
instruments and keep them running as the So the next time you are outside in the rain
rain kept falling. or snow, think about how satellites and scientists
Dr. Lynn McMurdie was surprised by a are counting those drops and flakes. The GPM
major snowstorm that brought close to 240 cm mission tells us how much freshwater is falling
(almost 8 feet) of snow in late December. A to Earth every three hours for almost the
team of National Park rangers and graduate entire planet. D. Janney
students who were assisting in the campaign
had to hike, ski, and use snowshoes to dig out
the equipment and recharge the batteries.
Answers
Answer: Lake Michigan
Where on Earth?
140 km2.
2006 and 1990 is: 193 53 = 4.6 cm (or 1.8 inches) of water.
4. The difference between 25.4 cm (or 10 inches) =
is covered with water. inches) x 2.54 cm (or 1 inch)
approximately 193 km2 of land Answer: 145.7 cm (or 18 glaciers, and ice shelves.
squares. That means You Do the Math
outlets called ice streams,
covers some or all of 193 less space than snow. slides into the sea through
3. In the 2006 image, water Therefore, water takes up griddle. The ice near the coast
some portion of the river. where the air used to be. batter spreading out on a
Approximately 53 km2 contain molecules take up the space own weight, like pancake
runs through 53 squares. escapes and the water flowing downhill under their
2. In the 1990 image, the river When snow melts, the air constantly in motion, slowly
by 27 km. 11 x 27 = 297 km2 frozen water crystals and air. the coasts. These ice sheets are
1. The satellite image is 11 km Answer: Snow is made up of inland, with thinner ice near
Answers: Snowmelt Science Answer: The thicker ice is
Data Detective DIY Science: Data Viz
15
Where on Earth?
This lake is the sixth largest
in the world, holding enough
fresh water to cover the entire
United States with a layer 51
centimeters (20 inches) deep.
The shoreline is 2,640
kilometers (1,640 miles) long,
roughly the distance from
New York City to Denver.
On average, a single drop
of water spends 99 years in
this lake.

What is the name of this lake?

(Find the answer on page 15.)