Heat on the Surface

LOADING REAL MODIS LST IMAGE...

SCROLL — ZOOM
DRAG — PAN
HOVER — COORDINATES

RENDERED LST COLOR SCALE

COLDERWARMER

Interactive Surface Heat Map

Move the time slider to update both the NASA MODIS map and the linked latitude heat profile. Click a latitude point to highlight that band on the map and track it across the year.

Current date

January 15, 2025

JANAPRJULOCTDEC

Monthly Heat Index

computed from sampled MODIS image pixels

The outlined bar marks the month currently selected by the slider.

Linked Latitude Heat Profile

current image · recalculated when the date changes

This chart updates with the selected month. Click a point to select a latitude band and compare that band across all months.

Selected Latitude Over Time

selected band: 0° Equator

After you click a latitude point above, this chart shows how that same latitude band changes across all 12 monthly MODIS frames.

Relative heat index: The Relative Heat Index is a simplified color intensity score used to track heat patterns based on visual data rather than raw thermometer readings. Because this dashboard samples RGB pixel colors directly from NASA’s rendered images, we converted those colors into a derived scale ranging from 0 to 100. In this system, higher values represent the "hottest" colors on the map, such as bright reds and oranges, while lower values represent cooler tones like deep blues. While this metric does not provide an exact temperature in degrees Celsius, it serves as a tool for comparing spatial and seasonal shifts, allowing users to see exactly how different regions warm up or cool down relative to one another over time. not raw Celsius temperature.