--- description: Flooding from Hurricane Florence was so severe that NASA could see darkened, contaminated rivers flowing into the Atlantic Ocean title: NASA Captures Polluted Carolina Rivers Flowing to the Ocean image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8345360c599554fa/69893b2d0a4a2200f59d3cdc/northcarolina_oli_2018262_cdom.jpg?branch=production&width=1440&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [weather](/tag/weather/) ## weather Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # NASA Captures Polluted Carolina Rivers Spilling Into the Ocean After Hurricane Florence ## Video: President Trump Declares Hurricane Florence 'One of the Wetest We've Seen From The Standpoint of Water' [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Declares Hurricane Florence 'One of the Wetest We've Seen From The Standpoint of Water'](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TYoXOHLV.m3u8) (1:22)  _Published 2018-09-19. President Trump Declares Hurricane Florence 'One of the Wetest We've Seen From The Standpoint of Water'_ by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 26, 2018 8:16 AM CUT  NASA by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 26, 2018 8:16 AM CUT Flooding from Hurricane Florence, which battered the Carolinas this month, is so severe that NASA was able to spot darkened, [contaminated rivers](https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/92786/a-broad-view-of-flooding-in-the-carolinas "undefined") flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. Nearly 8 trillion gallons of rain fell on North Carolina during the storm, according to the National Weather Service in Raleigh. That deluge took a devastating toll, swelling rivers and inundating homes. NASA satellite images released this week reveal just how engorged, and polluted the rivers and other waterways became. One image, captured on Sept. 19, indicates that “soils, sediments, decaying leaves, pollution, and other debris have discolored the water in the swollen rivers, bays, estuaries, and the nearshore ocean,” according to NASA. The discoloration is visible as navy blue and black tributaries spilling from the coast in unsettling plumes. > [](https://twitter.com/EdPiotrowski/status/1044406277496082433) A second image from NASA’s Landsat 8 combines visible and infrared imagining to trace the amount “[colored dissolved organic matter](https://eros.usgs.gov/doi-remote-sensing-activities/2016/spectral-analysis-colored-dissolved-organic-matter-cdom "undefined")” (CDOM). CDOM, which includes detritus like leaves, roots and bark, appeared in “high” concentrations even in the ocean around North Carolina’s Cape Lookout. NASA also released an image of the Trent River, which swelled to an [all-time high of 29 feet](https://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=mhx&gage=trtn7 "undefined") on Sept. 17, according to the National Weather Service. The river more than doubled “flood stage,” or the height at which a river overflows its banks and causes damage nearby. Hurricane Florence [crashed into the Carolinas](http://time.com/5396164/hurricane-florence-landfall-latest/ "undefined") on Sept. 14, [shattering rainfall records](http://time.com/5397241/florence-breaks-rainfall-records-in-north-carolina/ "undefined") and causing “catastrophic flash flooding” that claimed [dozens of lives](http://time.com/5397509/florence-death-toll-15-depression/ "undefined"). By Sept. 18, [sixteen rivers](https://www.ncdps.gov/news/press-releases/2018/09/18/governor-cooper-dangerous-conditions-remain-despite-better-weather "undefined") had breached their “flood stage”, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. Rivers swollen by Florence also [poured into industrial facilities](http://time.com/5398560/florence-floods-hog-farms-coal-ash-dumps/ "undefined") like coal ash dumps and hog farm manure pits in North Carolina, raising environmental concerns that the floodwaters could spread pollution across the state. This week, lawmakers began considering a [$1.7 billion relief package](http://time.com/5404209/congress-hurricane-florence-relief/ "undefined") to fund recovery efforts after the storm. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/"},"headline":"NASA Captures Polluted Carolina Rivers Spilling Into the Ocean After Hurricane Florence","datePublished":"2018-09-26T08:16:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:32:41.219Z","description":"The images revealed rivers discolored by debris and other contaminants","url":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/","keywords":["weather","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8345360c599554fa/69893b2d0a4a2200f59d3cdc/northcarolina_oli_2018262_cdom.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eli Meixler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eli/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8345360c599554fa/69893b2d0a4a2200f59d3cdc/northcarolina_oli_2018262_cdom.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"northcarolina_oli_2018262_cdom","caption":"","creditText":"NASA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/weather/","name":"weather"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/","name":"NASA Captures Polluted Carolina Rivers Spilling Into the Ocean After Hurricane Florence"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"President Trump Declares Hurricane Florence 'One of the Wetest We've Seen From The Standpoint of Water'","description":"President Trump Declares Hurricane Florence 'One of the Wetest We've Seen From The Standpoint of Water'","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/TYoXOHLV/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2018-09-19T13:44:53.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/TYoXOHLV.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/","duration":"PT1M22S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5406624/nasa-carolina-river-pollution-hurricane-florence/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```