August 26, 2017
Even the most precise clock in the world cannot measure how unlikely your existence really is.
Hurricane Harvey Strengthens
Birthday · August 26, 2017
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
Free PNG · 1080 × 1350 · No account needed
Image rights and credit requirements apply when sharing or reusing imagery.
Date & occasion only
Change the year
APOD published August 26, 2017 · Video still. Full image credits are on the original APOD entry below. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
A large and dangerous hurricane has developed in the Gulf of Mexico. The featured time-lapse video shows Hurricane Harvey growing to Category 4 strength over the past few days, as captured by NASA and NOAA's GOES-East satellite. Starting as a slight dip in air pressure, hurricanes swell into expansive spiraling storm systems, complete with high winds and driving rain. Hurricanes are powered by evaporating ocean water, and so typically gain strength over warm water and lose strength over land. Much remains unknown about hurricanes and cyclones, including details of how they are formed and the exact path they will take. Hurricane Harvey, accompanied by a dangerous storm surge, made landfall late yesterday in Texas.