The Columbia Glacier in Alaska descends from an ice field 10,000 feet above sea level, down the flanks of the Chugach Mountains, and into a narrow inlet. It is one of the most rapidly changing glaciers in the world and our Earth observing satellites have been tracking its shifting form for over 30 years. False-color images show how the glacier and the surrounding landscape has changed since 1986. The Landsat images combine shortwave-infrared, near-infrared and green portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. With this combination of wavelengths, snow and ice appears bright cyan, vegetation is green, clouds are white or light orange, and open water is dark blue. Exposed bedrock is brown, while rocky debris on the glacier’s surface is gray. Credit: NASA/USGS/Landsat/Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon #nasa #space #earth #landsat #satellite #earthscience #science #glacier #decades #change #columbiaglacier #alaska #snow #ice #melt #inlet #infrared