Earth Has a Heartbeat and Now We Can See It 💚🌍

In an awe-inspiring reveal, satellites have captured something truly breathtaking: a soft, glowing signal from plants that scientists are calling Earth’s pulse. It’s called solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (yeah, a mouthful but stay with us), and it might just be the closest we’ve ever come to watching our planet breathe.

So what’s really going on?

Every time a plant photosynthesizes (soaks up sunlight and turns it into energy) it gives off a tiny, invisible glow. We can’t see it with our eyes, but satellites like NASA’s OCO-2, Japan’s GOSAT, and Europe’s Sentinel can. That glow, believe it or not, is a direct sign of how much carbon dioxide plants are pulling out of the air.

In short: it’s a live map of Earth’s lungs doing their thing.

Art meets science in Bradford

This incredible footage is now part of the YOU:MATTER exhibit at Bradford 2025, turning hard science into a poetic experience. You’ll see the planet pulse with every sunrise, every growing season. It’s beautiful, powerful and kind of emotional.

Why it matters?

This isn’t just about glowing trees or satellite tech. It’s about remembering that Earth is alive. That it has a rhythm. A heartbeat. A story.

And once you’ve seen it, you’ll never look at a forest or a field of grass the same way again.

Source: ESSD.org