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It looks for all the world like the planet spends half the year taking a deep breath, and the other half letting it out.

'Breathing' earth in eerie NASA satellite map


Daniel Martins
Digital Reporter

Tuesday, November 24, 2015, 9:17 AM - When the winds were blowing just right in Cumberland County, N.S., earlier this month, they made the forest look like it was literally breathing.

Though just an optical illusion, it was eerie to watch. But there's nothing illusory about the NASA animation above, which shows the Earth's 12-month biosphere cycle.

Released earlier in November, the animation shows the progress of Earth's plant life during the seasons. It looks for all the world like the planet spends half the year taking a deep breath, and the other half letting it out.

It's a composite of data from several satellites, averaged out from several years of observations, and includes ocean biomes as well.

"On land, the images represent the density of plant growth, while in the oceans they show the chlorophyll concentration from tiny, plant-like organisms called phytoplankton," the animators say.

You can clearly see the dark greens of the plants migrate from north to south as the seasons shift, with a clear contrast between hemispheres. Even Canada, whose northern half is in and around the Arctic, becomes a carpet of green at the height of the northern summer.

It's not the first time we've featured a look at the Earth's seasons like this. Check out this seasonal animation of the northern hemisphere, put together by data visualization expert John Nelson using satellite photos.

SOURCE: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

WATCH BELOW: The breathing tree of British Columbia:

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