By — Julia Griffin Julia Griffin Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/new-satellite-photos-reveal-extent-harvey-flooding-houston Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter New satellite photos reveal extent of Harvey flooding in Houston Science Sep 1, 2017 5:52 PM EDT Images from NASA’s Terra satellite show the extent of increased water on the ground along the Texas coast between August 20 and August 31. Photo by NASA Earth Observatory/Jesse Allen/LANCE As Harvey’s rains push northwards into Kentucky and the nation’s northeast corridor, new photos reveal the extent of flooding the record-breaking storm left behind in the Houston region. Satellite images released by NASA and San Francisco-based startup Planet show once-green neighborhoods, farm areas and golf courses inundated by brown flood waters as Harvey’s clouds finally dissipated Thursday. NASA rain accumulation data reveal Harvey dumped more than 30 inches of rain on Houston and other areas of east Texas between August 25th and 29th. Mary’s Creek at Winding Road — southeast of Houston — reported a total of 49.32 inches by Tuesday morning. Photo courtesy NASA JAXA/ Hal Pierce Harvey — which made landfall in southern Texas as a category 4 storm on August 25 — dumped more than 30 inches of rain on portions of Houston and eastern Texas over a four-day period. Between the increased urban development and already saturated soils, the unprecedented waters had nowhere to go. Texas authorities now say the 1-in-1000-year flood event damaged or destroyed more than 156,000 homes, drove thousands to local shelters, and left at least 39 people dead. Neighborhoods, parks and a golf course were transformed into a lake as waters overflowed from the Bear and Langham creeks. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com Neighborhoods along Buffalo Bayou, on the southwest side of Houston, saw massive flooding. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com Floodwaters can be seen on the surface of the West Sam Houston Tollway. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com On the north side of Houston, Cypress Creek spilled it’s banks into dozens of neighborhoods. Before photo, left, taken July 31. After photo, right, taken August 31.Images via www.Planet.com We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Julia Griffin Julia Griffin Julia Griffin is senior coordinator of digital video at PBS NewsHour where she oversees the daily production of video content for the organization’s website and social media platforms.
Images from NASA’s Terra satellite show the extent of increased water on the ground along the Texas coast between August 20 and August 31. Photo by NASA Earth Observatory/Jesse Allen/LANCE As Harvey’s rains push northwards into Kentucky and the nation’s northeast corridor, new photos reveal the extent of flooding the record-breaking storm left behind in the Houston region. Satellite images released by NASA and San Francisco-based startup Planet show once-green neighborhoods, farm areas and golf courses inundated by brown flood waters as Harvey’s clouds finally dissipated Thursday. NASA rain accumulation data reveal Harvey dumped more than 30 inches of rain on Houston and other areas of east Texas between August 25th and 29th. Mary’s Creek at Winding Road — southeast of Houston — reported a total of 49.32 inches by Tuesday morning. Photo courtesy NASA JAXA/ Hal Pierce Harvey — which made landfall in southern Texas as a category 4 storm on August 25 — dumped more than 30 inches of rain on portions of Houston and eastern Texas over a four-day period. Between the increased urban development and already saturated soils, the unprecedented waters had nowhere to go. Texas authorities now say the 1-in-1000-year flood event damaged or destroyed more than 156,000 homes, drove thousands to local shelters, and left at least 39 people dead. Neighborhoods, parks and a golf course were transformed into a lake as waters overflowed from the Bear and Langham creeks. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com Neighborhoods along Buffalo Bayou, on the southwest side of Houston, saw massive flooding. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com Floodwaters can be seen on the surface of the West Sam Houston Tollway. Before photo, left, taken August 1. After photo, right, taken August 31. Images via www.Planet.com On the north side of Houston, Cypress Creek spilled it’s banks into dozens of neighborhoods. Before photo, left, taken July 31. After photo, right, taken August 31.Images via www.Planet.com We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now