Researchers are working to improve forecasts of atmospheric rivers — long, narrow systems of moist, tropical air that can deposit enormous amounts of water, bringing both relief from drought and catastrophic flooding.
Established in 2005, the joint NASA and U.S. Agency for International Development program SERVIR (named for the Spanish verb “to serve”) puts geospatial satellite images and analysis tools into the hands of local decision-makers around the world to help them deal with natural disasters and plan for changing climates.