2024's most mesmerizing images from space

AccuWeather meteorologists discuss some breathtaking imagery captured by NOAA satellites in 2024.

Transcript

00:002024 has been a year of spectacular natural events offering sites that leave us in awe.

00:06While we often experience these wonders from the ground, satellites orbiting the earth

00:10provide a unique vantage point and we're looking at some of the most intriguing satellite images

00:15of the year.

00:16It kind of looks like UFOs, doesn't it?

00:19It's what they call Kármán vortices.

00:21Much like a river, the atmosphere is fluid and when water hits a barrier, it has to go

00:25around.

00:26Clouds work the exact same way.

00:29Almost any time you have a wind or a motion of the wind that is disrupted by an object,

00:35in this case islands, you get a downstream response of these little swirls.

00:41You see them all over the world.

00:43Water clashing with barriers creates mesmerizing sights, but water interacting with fire is

00:48a whole other story.

00:49This satellite image of the Park Fire in California shows the burn area from July 24 to the 26th.

00:55This isn't just a unique perspective of the devastating wildfire, but also a tool to help

00:59crews battle the blaze.

01:01AccuWeather meteorologist and firefighter Jeff Cornish explains.

01:04In the past, there were people in fire towers that would look out and try to find smoke

01:09and locate it, triangulate it through other fire tower workers.

01:14Now, satellite technology can produce some amazing imagery like this.

01:17The advancement has revolutionized the ways crews detect and combat fires, dramatically

01:22enhancing their response time.

01:24Imagery like this is allowing officials to respond more quickly, identifying hot pixels

01:30in that satellite imagery where there may be a new fire breaking out, and that can give

01:35them earlier warning.

01:36Now take a look at this extraordinary image captured overnight in early May.

01:40It shows a breathtaking view of the auroras encircling the northern hemisphere.

01:44Here's how it appeared from space, and here's how it appeared from the ground.

01:47Coupled with the total solar eclipse in April, it has truly been a year of awe-inspiring

01:52celestial scenery.

01:54For AccuWeather, I'm meteorologist Tony Laubach.