The Role of NASA’s Earth Science Division in Advancing Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction

The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), while primarily known for space exploration, plays a pivotal role in public health research and environmental monitoring through its Earth Science Division. The vast repository of data collected by NASA’s satellites is a critical resource for scientists tracking the health impacts of climate change, thereby making significant contributions to the achievement of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, proposed budgetary cuts to the agency threaten to undermine this progress, with serious consequences for global health and climate action.

Direct Contributions to SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

Monitoring and Predicting Infectious Disease Outbreaks

NASA’s data provides an essential foundation for research aimed at combating the spread of communicable diseases, directly supporting SDG Target 3.3 (end the epidemics of communicable diseases).

• Lyme Disease: Researchers like Daniel P. Johnson at Indiana University utilize NASA’s environmental data—including landscape, air temperature, and solar radiation values—to map the spread of Lyme disease. By correlating this data with the prevalence of the white-footed mouse, a primary reservoir for the disease-causing bacteria, they can inform public health interventions.
• Malaria: As climate change alters rainfall and temperature patterns, NASA satellite data and modeling help public health officials predict shifts in malaria seasons. This foresight allows for the timely prepositioning of essential supplies like bed nets and prophylactic drugs in endemic regions.
• Cholera: Satellite imagery has been instrumental in developing tools that predict cholera outbreak risks in vulnerable countries. This predictive capability enables health teams to mobilize and implement preventative measures, minimizing illness and death.

Addressing Environmental Health Risks

The agency’s work is crucial for understanding and mitigating the health impacts of environmental factors, aligning with SDG Target 3.9 (substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination).

• Air Quality and Respiratory Health: NASA actively tracks air pollution and particulate matter. This data supports studies on the environmental triggers for asthma, cardiovascular disease, and other respiratory conditions. Initiatives like the Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team (HAQAST) use satellite data to fill knowledge gaps in areas lacking ground-based monitors.
• Climate-Related Health Hazards: Research funded or supported by NASA examines the direct health consequences of a warming planet, including the effects of extreme heat on cognitive decline in the elderly and pre-term births.

Supporting Climate Action and Sustainable Environments (SDG 13 & 11)

Foundational Data for Climate Action (SDG 13)

NASA’s mission to monitor the “vital signs of the planet” is fundamental to SDG 13 (Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts). A constellation of over 20 satellites continuously gathers data on global temperature trends, wildfires, and groundwater levels, providing the empirical evidence necessary for climate science and policy.

Enhancing Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11)

NASA’s data contributes to making human settlements more inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable, in line with SDG 11.

• Researchers use NASA data to develop strategies for protecting urban areas during heat waves.
• Satellite tracking of wildfire smoke and air pollutants supports emergency public health responses and helps reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities (SDG Target 11.6).

Threats to Progress on Sustainable Development Goals

Proposed Budgetary Reductions and Their Consequences

The future of NASA’s contributions to the SDGs is uncertain due to proposed administrative budget cuts that would more than halve funding for the Earth Science Division. These cuts represent a significant threat to the continuity of vital public health and climate research.

Projected Impacts on SDG Attainment

The proposed reductions could have far-reaching negative impacts on the ability to meet global sustainability targets.

1. Loss of Critical Data: The decommissioning of satellites and the halting of data collection would create irreversible gaps in our understanding of climate change and its health impacts, directly impeding progress on SDG 3 and SDG 13.
2. Disruption of Research and Partnerships: The collaborative framework between NASA, universities, and public health agencies—a model for SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)—would be severely weakened. Research projects reliant on NASA funding and data would be halted, slowing the development of critical public health solutions.
3. Erosion of Scientific Capacity: The closure of research labs, dismissal of key scientific advisors, and a “brain drain” of personnel risk a long-term loss of the institutional knowledge required to address complex global challenges.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  The article’s central theme is the intersection of environmental data and public health. It details how NASA’s data is used to track and study various diseases and health conditions, including Lyme disease, malaria, cholera, asthma, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, cognitive decline, and pre-term birth. The potential loss of this data due to budget cuts directly threatens progress in understanding and combating these health issues.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  The article mentions research aimed at protecting urban areas from heat waves and tracking air pollution. It highlights the use of satellite data to monitor pollutants like fine particulate matter and ozone in areas that lack ground-based monitors, which is crucial for assessing and improving air quality in human settlements.

• SDG 13: Climate Action

  The entire context of the article is the impact of a “warming planet” on public health. It discusses how NASA’s Earth Science Division monitors “vital signs of the planet,” such as global temperature trends, wildfires, and greenhouse gases. The research described, such as tracking the spread of Lyme disease as the climate changes, is a direct effort to understand and adapt to the health consequences of climate change.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  The article emphasizes the collaboration between NASA, a government agency, and various other entities, including universities (Indiana University, George Washington University, Duke), public health agencies (like the CDC), and researchers worldwide. This multi-stakeholder partnership is crucial for mobilizing and sharing the knowledge (NASA’s data) and technology needed to address complex global challenges like climate change and public health.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

   • Target 3.3: By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases. The article explicitly mentions research using NASA data to track and predict outbreaks of communicable diseases like Lyme disease, malaria, and the water-borne disease cholera.
   • Target 3.9: By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination. The article discusses how NASA data is used to track air pollution and particulate matter, which are linked to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, thereby helping to characterize the risk of illness from air pollution.
   • Target 3.d: Strengthen the capacity of all countries… for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks. The use of NASA satellite imagery to develop tools that can “predict cholera outbreak risks” and map the changing seasons for malaria provides a clear example of strengthening early warning and risk reduction capabilities.

2. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

   • Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality. The article describes research using satellite data to “fill in environmental health knowledge gaps in rural areas” and track pollutants like “ozone, fine particulate matter,” which directly supports the goal of monitoring and managing urban and rural air quality.

3. SDG 13: Climate Action

   • Target 13.1: Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries. The research on protecting urban areas during heat waves and tracking wildfire smoke to support emergency response are examples of building adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards.
   • Target 13.3: Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning. The article notes that NASA makes its data available to “people in local government, people in school boards, people in any walks of life,” which enhances institutional and public capacity to understand and respond to climate impacts.

4. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Target 17.16: Enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources. The collaboration between NASA and researchers like Susan Anenberg and Daniel P. Johnson, as well as teams like HAQAST, exemplifies a partnership that shares scientific knowledge and data to achieve health and climate goals.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• For SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being):

  • Incidence of specific diseases: The article’s focus on tracking Lyme disease, malaria, and cholera implies that the incidence rates of these diseases are key indicators. The research aims to create a “rough map of where Lyme is present” and predict cholera outbreaks, which are methods for measuring and monitoring disease prevalence.
  • Air pollution levels: The article explicitly mentions tracking “local levels of fine particulate matter or carbon dioxide” and other pollutants like ozone. These measurements serve as direct indicators for Target 3.9, linking air quality to health outcomes.

• For SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities):

  • Annual mean levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5): This is a direct reference to indicator 11.6.2. The work of Tracey Holloway’s team to use satellite data to monitor fine particulate matter where ground monitors are absent is a clear effort to measure this indicator.

• For SDG 13 (Climate Action):

  • Data on climate variables: The article states that NASA satellites provide data on “land surface temperature, ocean surface temperature, vegetation density,” and “global temperature trends.” These are fundamental indicators used to monitor climate change and assess related hazards.

• For SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals):

  • Volume of shared data and number of collaborations: The article implies the importance of this indicator by stating that NASA provides almost “25 terabytes every day” of data at “no charge to researchers and to federal, state, and local public health agencies… around the globe.” The existence of research cohorts like HAQAST and numerous funded projects also serves as an indicator of the scale of these partnerships.

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: undark.org