The latest images, captured by NASA satellites on the afternoon of October 22, show the thick, billowing smoke coming off the numerous large fires and spreading over the Pacific Ocean.
The human face of the exploration of Earth's polar regions is coming to science centers and museums across the United States with the Polar-Palooza "Stories from a Changing Planet" tour, sponsored by NASA and the National Science Foundation.
A new NASA-led study found a 23-percent loss in the extent of the Arctic's thick, year-round sea ice cover during the past two winters, which is the primary cause of this summer's fastest-ever sea ice retreat on record and subsequent smallest-ever extent of total Arctic coverage.