NASA data helps pinpoint impacted populations in disaster aftermath

Friday, June 13, 2008 - 10:22 in Earth & Climate

When two catastrophic natural disasters struck within days of each other in May 2008, disaster relief, humanitarian aid, and health officials, as well as members of the news media tapped into a unique set of NASA data products describing the location of the exposed populations. In the hours and days following the cyclone in Burma and the earthquake in China's Sichuan Province, workers had the data they needed to assess the numbers of people possibly affected in these deadly events. What arose was a timely example of how NASA data comes to the aid of officials when such disasters occur.

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