Your gateway to endless inspiration
Rain, snowmelt, and soil moisture—those three factors might push portions of the Upper Mississippi River into major flooding this spring. Meanwhile, the middle and lower reaches of the river are already well out of their banks.
Intense storms over February 22-24, 2019, caused major flooding along the Middle Mississippi River. On February 25, 2019, the Landsat 8 satellite acquired images of swollen portions of the Mississippi River. The video above shows a false-color view of flooding near Memphis, Tennessee comparing February 2019 to February 2014. Flood waters appear blue; vegetation is green; and bare ground is brown. Notice how the Ohio River and Mississippi River have swelled near Cairo, the southernmost city in Illinois.
National Weather Service forecasters noted that higher-than-average precipitation in autumn 2018 saturated soils in the region, so additional rain or snowmelt from this winter will likely result in excessive runoff and increased flooding threats.
Rapid snowmelt will also play a role in flooding this spring in the Midwest. Parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin have built up snowpack of nearly 25 inches, so melting snow alone could propel many areas into major flooding.
Read the full story here.
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com