? Grounded science
Questions
What you can actually ask NASA's data — grounded questions, each with a dataset list, a code template, expected output, and honest caveats.
◐Earth ↔ ☉others
The Sun–Earth connection — 4 cross-division questions ?
q01·intermediate
Is deforestation happening in this area, and what are its effects?
Datasets: 5 · 5–15 min (small AOI) using cloud-direct access
?
q02·intermediate
Has methane increased near this oil/gas infrastructure?
Datasets: 5 · 15–45 min depending on plume density
?
q03·intermediate
How has air quality changed in my city over the last decade?
Datasets: 5 · 10–30 min
?
q04·intermediate
Did a wildfire impact downwind air quality, and how far did the smoke reach?
Datasets: 6 · 20–60 min
?
q05·advanced
How is global atmospheric CO₂ changing, and where are the strongest sources?
Datasets: 5 · 30–90 min
?
q06·intermediate
Is my reservoir / lake / river running low compared to historical normals?
Datasets: 6 · 15–45 min
?
q07·advanced
What's happening with groundwater in my region?
Datasets: 6 · 30–90 min
?
q08·beginner
How much rainfall has my region had this year compared to the 30-year normal?
Datasets: 4 · 5–15 min
?
q09·intermediate
How much ice has Greenland or Antarctica lost?
Datasets: 6 · 30–60 min
?
q10·intermediate
Is Arctic sea ice breaking up earlier each year?
Datasets: 6 · 15–30 min
?
q11·intermediate
How has the urban heat island in my city changed over decades?
Datasets: 6 · 20–60 min
?
q12·beginner
Is light pollution / electrification changing in this region?
Datasets: 4 · 5–20 min
?
q13·intermediate
Was this region flooded after a recent storm?
Datasets: 6 · 1–6 hours (real disaster response timing)
?
q14·intermediate
When and where do harmful algal blooms occur in my coastal waters?
Datasets: 5 · 20–60 min
?
q15·intermediate
How are coastal sea-surface temperatures changing, and are marine heatwaves becoming more common?
Datasets: 6 · 15–45 min
?
q16·intermediate
Where is surface water, and how is it changing over time?
Datasets: 5 · 20–60 min
?
q17·intermediate
How much water are crops in my area using, and are they water-stressed?
Datasets: 5 · 10–20 min (small AOI) using cloud-direct access
?
q18·intermediate
How much of my region's water supply is locked in snow, and is the snowpack shrinking?
Datasets: 5 · 15–30 min
?
q19·intermediate
Is a volcano degassing or erupting — can I track its SO₂ plume?
Datasets: 5 · 20–45 min
?
q20·intermediate
Is the growing season shifting — are plants greening up earlier or staying green longer?
Datasets: 4 · 5–15 min (small AOI) using cloud-direct access
?
q21·intermediate
After days of monsoon rain, is the hillside above my village about to slide?
Datasets: 5 · 30–60 min
?
q22·intermediate
Is a drought quietly building across my region before the harvest fails?
Datasets: 3 · 10–20 min (small AOI) using cloud-direct access
?
q23·intermediate
After the cyclone made landfall, which villages and farms near me got flooded?
Datasets: 5 · 1–6 hours (real disaster-response timing)
?
q24·intermediate
When a heatwave hits my city, which neighborhoods bake the hottest — and who lives there?
Datasets: 5 · 20–45 min
?
q25·intermediate
Is the lake or river my town drinks from getting choked with toxic algae?
Datasets: 3 · 20–60 min
?
q26·intermediate
Is the air in my city getting more polluted — and how many people are breathing the worst of it?
Datasets: 4 · 20–45 min
?
q27·advanced
Is the reservoir my town depends on rising or falling — and who relies on it?
Datasets: 4 · 45–90 min
✦ Cross-division synthesis
The Sun–Earth connection
Earth science doesn't stop at the top of the atmosphere. A few questions are best answered by pairing Earth data with another NASA division — most of all Heliophysics, where the Sun drives Earth's energy and upper atmosphere.
◐Earth ↔☉Helio
Is Earth warming from the Sun, or from us?
Measure the Sun's actual energy output (Heliophysics) and set it against Earth's outgoing energy (Earth). The gap, and how it tracks the solar cycle, separates Sun-driven change from human-driven warming.
x01 · 30–90 min
◐Earth ↔☉Helio
Where will the aurora be visible tonight?
Watch the solar wind leave the Sun (Heliophysics), then catch the aurora it triggers in Earth's night imagery (Earth). One physical chain, two divisions.
x02 · 20–45 min
◐Earth ↔✦Astro
What would Earth look like as a distant exoplanet?
Use whole-disk images of Earth (Earth) as the template for the faint dot a telescope sees (Astrophysics) — the calibration for hunting life on other worlds.
x03 · 30–60 min
◐Earth ↔◯Planetary
How does dust on Earth compare to dust on Mars?
The same imaging-spectroscopy technique maps the mineral makeup of dust sources on Earth (Earth, EMIT) and on Mars (Planetary, CRISM) — letting two worlds inform one another.
x04 · 30–60 min