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Darker surface features (like rocks and plant canopies) absorb more light than lighter surfaces (like sand) and therefore get hotter in the afternoon. Over the course of a day, these heating differences can set up atmospheric motions that influence global clouds and rain. || ", "release_date": "2002-07-01T12:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2023-05-03T13:57:30.172552-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 526949, "url": "https://nasaviz.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a002400/a002477/ntruecolor.0200_web.jpg", "filename": "ntruecolor.0200_web.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "The highlighted area is the area of improved Albedo.", "width": 320, "height": 216, "pixels": 69120 }, "main_video": { "id": 526947, "url": "https://nasaviz.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a002400/a002477/a002477.webmhd.webm", "filename": "a002477.webmhd.webm", "media_type": "Movie", "alt_text": "This is an illustration of TERRA-MODISs ability to differentiate many levels of reflectivity over the globe where previous spacecraft intruments had only one level ", "width": 960, "height": 540, "pixels": 518400 }, "main_credits": { "Visualizations by": [ { "name": "Lori Perkins", "employer": "NASA/GSFC" } ] }, "progress": "Complete", "media_groups": [ { "id": 362538, "url": "https://nasaviz.gsfc.nasa.gov/2477/#media_group_362538", "widget": "Basic text with HTML", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "The MODIS instrument, flying aboard NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites, measures how much solar radiation is reflected by the Earth's surface almost every day over the entire planet. 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{ "name": "Crystal Schaaf", "employer": "Boston University" }, { "name": "Elena Tsvetsinskaya", "employer": "Boston University" } ] } ], "missions": [ "Terra" ], "series": [ "MODIS Albedo" ], "tapes": [], "papers": [], "datasets": [ { "name": "", "common_name": "", "platform": "Terra", "sensor": "MODIS", "type": "Other", "organizations": [], "description": "", "credit": "", "url": "", "date_range": "2000/11/01" } ], "nasa_science_categories": [ "Earth" ], "keywords": [ "Albedo", "Climatology", "Forecast", "Physical geography" ], "recommended_pages": [], "related": [], "sources": [], "products": [], "newer_versions": [], "older_versions": [], "alternate_versions": [] }