Zimbabwe is facing a severe El Niño-induced drought. The drought has severely affected subsistence agriculture, which supports 70% of the population. Crop yields have plummeted, and water reserves are at historic lows, creating a humanitarian crisis in rural communities. With maize production down 72% last year, the situation is particularly...

Phytoplankton, tiny photosynthetic organisms, are the base of the marine food chain. Their blooms play a vital role in marine ecosystems and in the regulation of global climate, as they are responsible for a significant proportion of the Earth's oxygen production and contribute to the sequestration of atmospheric carbon.  This image, acquired...

Lake Constance, visible in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image acquired on 29 July 2024, lies on the border between Germany, Austria and Switzerland and is one of the most important natural treasures in Central Europe. Covering an area of almost 540 square kilometres, the lake is not only an important source of fresh water, but also a hotspot of...

The Alpine Arc is among the regions most threatened by climate change. Over the past two decades, the glaciers of this iconic mountain range in the heart of Europe have lost about a third of their ice volume, receding by an average of 30 metres per year and thinning by 1 to 1.5 metres annually across their entire surface. One of the most...

This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image acquired on 17 August 2024 shows the Costa Blanca, an area severely affected by the drought in Spain. The prolonged lack of rainfall has led to significant water shortages, resulting in the salinisation of aquifers in coastal towns such as Teulada-Moraira and Benitatxell. As a result, tap water has been declared...