An earthquake, wildfires, war and a funeral are among the world events that satellite images have helped Sky News cover this year.
Here we reflect on some of the most impactful pictures.
January: California wildfires, Altadena
From 7 to 31 January, fires blazed across parts of Los Angeles and San Diego, powered by strong winds and dry conditions on the ground.
They killed at least 30 people and caused an estimated 440 indirect deaths as a result of the fires, according to a study published in the JAMA medical journal in August.
February: Attacks on a refugee camp in Sudan
In February, Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters stormed the Zamzam refugee camp in North Darfur, setting fire to buildings and killing civilians.
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Satellite images from Vantor show how buildings and stalls were burned during the attack.
Sudan’s deadly civil war raged on throughout the year.
March: An earthquake causes major destruction in Myanmar
On 28 March, a deadly 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar, causing between 3,600 and 5,350 deaths, according to United Nations agency estimates.
Buildings across the country collapsed, displacing an estimated 200,000 people.
April: The funeral for Pope Francis
Thousands of people gathered outside St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on 26 April to mourn Pope Francis.
The Argentinian pontiff became known for a more progressive approach during his 12-year papacy. He died aged 88 on 21 April.
May: GPS jamming on the Baltic coast
In recent years, radio jamming and electronic interference have intensified. These activities introduce powerful artificial frequencies, which interfere with and can be identified by synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) imagery.
SAR imagery is created by sending radio signals from space to the earth and measuring the signals that bounce back.
This example shows the banding effect interference can produce, visible over the Russian enclave Kaliningrad, a growing source of claims by analysts of GPS interference.
June: Ukraine drones hit Russian airbases
On 1 June, several Russian aircraft bombers suffered damage and destruction after a number of surprise Ukrainian drone attacks.
High-resolution satellite imagery from 4 June shows visible damage and cleanup operations at Belaya and Olenya key airbases.
July: Crowds overwhelm aid trucks in Gaza
On 26 July in south Gaza, hundreds of Palestinians appeared to crowd around an aid convoy in scenes of overwhelm seen from space as people struggled to access food.
A month later, famine was declared in Gaza City by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) – a globally recognised system for classifying the severity of food insecurity and malnutrition.
August: ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ construction temporarily halted
New construction at Donald Trump’s Florida immigration centre was temporarily halted by a US judge in August, citing environmental concerns.
Detainees moved into the facility on an abandoned airport site 43 miles from Miami in July, after just eight days of construction.
Experts suggested the site was flawed, facing flooding near electrics during a storm as the first detainees were scheduled to arrive.
September: Nepal government palace burns during ‘Gen Z’ protests
On 9 September, Nepal’s federal parliament building in capital Kathmandu was set alight during youth-led protests.
Dozens died during the unrest, prompted by a since-reversed government decision to block 26 social media platforms and widespread claims of corruption among the young generation.
Damage to the palace grounds and buildings can be seen from satellite imagery comparing the start and end of the year.
October: Hurricane Mellissa
The category 5 hurricane – the worst natural disaster to make landfall in Jamaica since records began – devastated parts of the Caribbean on 28 October.
The World Bank estimated the storm’s physical damage at $8.8bn (41% of Jamaica’s 2024 GDP), including major flooding, damaged buildings and blocked roads.
One of the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites captured Melissa’s eye a few hours before hitting Jamaica’s southern coast.
November: Advanced US warship arrives in the Caribbean Sea
On 16 November, the US sent USS Gerald R Ford to the Caribbean in what the Trump administration said was a counter-drugs operation. It has been widely interpreted as a move to put pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s regime.
The arrival of the ship marked the largest build-up of US firepower in the region in generations; it was seen on satellite imagery off the coast of Puerto Rico on 17 November.
December: New York City festive lights
Striking nighttime satellite imagery from Vantor’s WorldView Legion shows Manhattan’s festive glow on 4 December.
One night before, on the evening of 3 December, the city lit its iconic Christmas tree at Rockefeller Plaza, which can be seen near St Patrick’s Cathedral.
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The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
