ISS028 Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

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ISS028-E-10162
photo ID ISS028-E-10162
ISS028-E-10162         Click the photo number to access all resolutions available and the database record.
Sault Ste Marie, Ontario and Michigan: The twin cities of Sault Ste Marie are located across the St. Mary’s River, which forms part of the international boundary between Canada (province of Ontario) and the United States (state of Michigan). This astronaut photograph highlights the two cities, as well as the lakes and islands that separate Lakes Huron and Superior, two of the Great Lakes of North America. Smaller lakes (including Lake George) and the large forested islands of St. Joseph and Drummond are visible east of the city (upper right in the image).

The image is oriented with north on the left. The Sault Ste Marie urban areas (image lower left) have a distinctive gray to white color, contrasting with the deep green of forested areas in Ontario and the lighter green of agricultural fields in Michigan. The water surfaces in the lakes and rivers vary from blue to blue-green to silver, likely the result of varying degrees of sediment and sunglint—light reflecting from the water surface back to the International Space Station.

Prior to formalization of the US-Canada border in 1817, Sault Ste Marie was a single community. Archeological evidence suggests the region was occupied by Native Americans at least five hundred years ago. A mission—the first European settlement in Michigan—was established there in 1668 by the French Jesuit Father Jacques Marquette. Today, shipping locks and canals in both urban areas are an important part of the Great Lakes shipping traffic system.

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