Images
May 11, 2026 - Fresh Snow in Colorado
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A spring storm brought heavy snow to parts of the Rocky Mountains and the Front Range of Colorado and Wyoming between May 5 and 6, 2026. Cheyenne, Wyoming, received almost 12 inches of snow, the most from a snowstorm since mid-March 2021. Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado received almost 3 feet of snow, and about 6 inches fell on Denver, which had its biggest May snowstorm since 2003.
On May 7, 2026, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this false-color image centered on Colorado the day after the massive dump of fresh snow.
This type of false-color image uses MODIS Bands 7-2-1 to help separate snow (electric blue) from clouds (white). It also shows vegetation as bright green while open land looks tan. In a true-color image (using Bands 4-3-1), white clouds would blend with white snow, making it hard to tell them apart.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/7/2026
Resolutions:
1km (318.4 KB), 500m (644.2 KB), 250m (874.2 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
A spring storm brought heavy snow to parts of the Rocky Mountains and the Front Range of Colorado and Wyoming between May 5 and 6, 2026. Cheyenne, Wyoming, received almost 12 inches of snow, the most from a snowstorm since mid-March 2021. Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado received almost 3 feet of snow, and about 6 inches fell on Denver, which had its biggest May snowstorm since 2003.
On May 7, 2026, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this false-color image centered on Colorado the day after the massive dump of fresh snow.
This type of false-color image uses MODIS Bands 7-2-1 to help separate snow (electric blue) from clouds (white). It also shows vegetation as bright green while open land looks tan. In a true-color image (using Bands 4-3-1), white clouds would blend with white snow, making it hard to tell them apart.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/7/2026
Resolutions:
1km (318.4 KB), 500m (644.2 KB), 250m (874.2 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
