Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

ISS005 Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

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ISS005-E-9984 Petroleum Infrastructure, Denver City, Texas: Agriculture and the petroleum industry compete for land use near Denver City, Texas, southwest of Lubbock near the New Mexico border. The economy of this region is almost completely dependent on its underground resources of petroleum and water. Both resources result in distinctive land use patterns visible from space. Historically this area has produced vast quantities of oil and gas since development began in the 1930’s. Note the fine, light-colored grid of roads and pipelines connecting well sites over this portion of the Wasson Oil Field, one of the state’s most productive. Since the 1940s, agricultural land use has shifted from grazing to irrigated cultivation of cotton, sorghum, wheat, hay, and corn. The water supply is drawn from wells tapping the vast, but failing, Ogallala Aquifer. Note the large, circular center-pivot irrigation systems in the lower corners of the image. The largest is nearly a mile in diameter.

ISS005-E-10000 Danube River flooding near Vác, Hungary: These images showing some of the devastating European flooding were captured by astronauts onboard the International Space Station. The photographs show flooding around the Danube Bend area just north of Budapest near the city of Vác, Hungary. The flood peaked in Budapest on August 19 at about 8.5 m (28 ft), exceeding the previous 1965 flood record. The images show the waters inundating farmland in the flood palain and then receding.

ISS005-E-10926 Danube River flooding near Vác, Hungary: These images showing some of the devastating European flooding were captured by astronauts onboard the International Space Station. The photographs show flooding around the Danube Bend area just north of Budapest near the city of Vác, Hungary. The flood peaked in Budapest on August 19 at about 8.5 m (28 ft), exceeding the previous 1965 flood record. The images show the waters inundating farmland in the flood palain and then receding.

ISS005-E-6997 Fernandina Island, Galapagos: La Cumbre volcano on Fernandina Island is the most active volcano on the Galapagos, erupting most recently in 1995. The volcano rises 1495 m from sea level. This photo was taken by the Expedition 5 crew aboard the International Space Station. The scene provides a detailed view of the 850-m-deep summit caldera. The dark flows in the middle of the caldera floor were erupted in 1991. Today, these flows are partly covered by dark green vegetation.

ISS005-E-7002 Summit Crater of Mauna Loa: Astronauts obtained this detailed image of the summit caldera of Mauna Loa volcano, called Mokuaweoweo Caldera. Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on our planet—the summit elevation is 4,170 m (over 13,600 ft), but the volcano’s summit rises 9 km above the sea floor. The sharp features of the summit caldera and lava flows that drain outward from the summit are tribute to the fact that Mauna Loa is one of the Earth’s most active volcanoes. The most recent eruption was in 1984. The straight line the cuts through the center of the crater from top to bottom is a rift zone—an area that pulls apart as magma reaches the surface.
A weather observatory run by NOAA’s Climate Monitoring & Diagnostics Lab is on the volcano’s north slope at 11,000 ft (3397 m). This facility, known as the Mauna Loa Observatory, is the site where scientists have documented the constantly increasing concentrations of global atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Other resources about Mauna Loa:
http://wwwhvo.wr.usgs.gov/maunaloa/
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/obop/mlo/

ISS005-E-5419 Hayman Fire and Others Scorch Western U.S.: This photograph taken by the new International Space Station crew on June 18, 2002, shows the Hayman Fire burning in the foothills southwest of Denver. Astronauts use a variety of lenses and look angles as their orbits pass over wildfires to document the long-distance movements of smoke from the fires as well as details of the burning areas. In this perspective view, you can see Littleton, Chatfield Lake and the Arkansas River.

ISS005-E-5416 Hayman Fire and Others Scorch Western U.S.: This photograph taken by the new International Space Station crew on June 18, 2002, shows the eastern flank of the Hayman Fire burning in the foothills southwest of Denver. Astronauts use a variety of lenses and look angles as their orbits pass over wildfires to document the long-distance movements of smoke from the fires as well as details of the burning areas. In this detail view, you can see multiple smoke source points as the fire moves across the rough terrain.

ISS005-E-21125 Lake Tandou, New South Wales, Australia: Sections of Australia are experiencing their worst drought in 100 years. In the outback of New South Wales, farms along the Darling River have received only 10 inches of rain in the past two years, forcing farmers to sell their livestock and let fields lie fallow. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station documented conditions in Australia last week, including these images of Lake Tandou in the Menindee Lake system along the Darling River.
The Menindee Lakes are part of an innovative water conservation project. Although this lakebed is protected from flooding and is used for agriculture (primarily cotton, sunflower and grains), it is one of several interconnected lakes that sit along the lower Darling River like a string of pearls. Other lakes function as water capture reservoirs to support controlled water flow for environmental and agricultural needs down river, and to provide flood mitigation. The original water management scheme was initiated in 1949. Several recent policies have established sustainable management of the regional water supplies, including caps on water diversions and increased water allocations and flow regimes for environmental conservation — the region supports a very high biodiversity. The area is also near the center of the aboriginal Baakantji country, as they traveled up and down the Darling River.
This image is a mosaic of images ISS005-E-21125, ISS005-E-21126 and ISS005-E-21127

ISS005-E-20451 Emi Koussi Volcano, Chad, North Africa: Emi Koussi is a high volcano that lies at the south end of the Tibesti Mountains in the central Sahara in northern Chad. The volcano is one of several in the Tibesti massif, and reaches 3415 m in altitude, rising 2.3 km above the surrounding sandstone plains. The volcano is 65 km wide.
This view of the Emi Koussi caldera was taken with an 800 mm lens on November 21, 2002. It is detailed to the point that it doesn’t include the entire 10-km diameter of the caldera, but reveals individual lava strata within the walls of the summit cliffs. Nested within the main caldera is a smaller crater that contains white salts of a dry lake at its lowest point. Here too, strata are visible in the walls of the smaller crater. The smaller crater is surrounded by a region of darker rocks—a geologically young dome of lava studded with several small circular volcanic vents.
Emi Koussi has been used as a close analog to the famous Martian volcano Elysium Mons. One of the most important morphological differences between volcanoes on Mars and Earth is the widespread furrowing of the surface due to flowing water on terrestrial volcanoes. The furrows are shallow valleys. Larger channels have a different origin. Major channels can be seen on volcanoes on both planets and indicate low points in caldera rims where lava spilled out of pre-collapse craters.

ISS005-E-11189 Well-head flare, Calanscio Sand Sea, Libya: A plume of black smoke blowing westward is silhouetted against linear dunes in the great sand sea of northeast Libya. Smoke from flares at remote well heads is commonly seen by astronauts flying over the Sahara Desert. The plume dispersal pattern visible at the left edge of the image may be due to upper-level winds or gravitational settling of heavier particulates.
The regular pattern of linear dunes is generated by two major winds: the dominant north wind (north is towards the top right) determines the orientation of the sand dunes. Gentler easterly winds, as were blowing when this view was taken, make the dunes asymmetric, with a gentle windward (west) slope and an oversteepened downwind slope. Some oversteepened slopes even cast shadows in the early morning light. One mound of sand (top right), due north of the well head, does not fit the pattern of linear dunes. This type is known as a star dune.

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This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Astromaterials Research & Exploration Science Directorate.

Recommended Citation: Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. "The Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth." .

NASA Responsible Official: Tracy Calhoun

Curator: jsc-earthweb@mail.nasa.gov

Contributors: Earth Sciences Web Team

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

International Space Station National Laboratory

Last Update:

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ISS005-E-9984	Petroleum Infrastructure, Denver City, Texas: Agriculture and the petroleum industry compete for land use near Denver City, Texas, southwest of Lubbock near the New Mexico border. The economy of this region is almost completely dependent on its underground resources of petroleum and water. Both resources result in distinctive land use patterns visible from space. Historically this area has produced vast quantities of oil and gas since development began in the 1930’s. Note the fine, light-colored grid of roads and pipelines connecting well sites over this portion of the Wasson Oil Field, one of the state’s most productive. Since the 1940s, agricultural land use has shifted from grazing to irrigated cultivation of cotton, sorghum, wheat, hay, and corn. The water supply is drawn from wells tapping the vast, but failing, Ogallala Aquifer. Note the large, circular center-pivot irrigation systems in the lower corners of the image. The largest is nearly a mile in diameter.
ISS005-E-10000	Danube River flooding near Vác, Hungary: These images showing some of the devastating European flooding were captured by astronauts onboard the International Space Station. The photographs show flooding around the Danube Bend area just north of Budapest near the city of Vác, Hungary. The flood peaked in Budapest on August 19 at about 8.5 m (28 ft), exceeding the previous 1965 flood record. The images show the waters inundating farmland in the flood palain and then receding.
ISS005-E-10926	Danube River flooding near Vác, Hungary: These images showing some of the devastating European flooding were captured by astronauts onboard the International Space Station. The photographs show flooding around the Danube Bend area just north of Budapest near the city of Vác, Hungary. The flood peaked in Budapest on August 19 at about 8.5 m (28 ft), exceeding the previous 1965 flood record. The images show the waters inundating farmland in the flood palain and then receding.
ISS005-E-6997	Fernandina Island, Galapagos: La Cumbre volcano on Fernandina Island is the most active volcano on the Galapagos, erupting most recently in 1995. The volcano rises 1495 m from sea level. This photo was taken by the Expedition 5 crew aboard the International Space Station. The scene provides a detailed view of the 850-m-deep summit caldera. The dark flows in the middle of the caldera floor were erupted in 1991. Today, these flows are partly covered by dark green vegetation.
ISS005-E-7002	Summit Crater of Mauna Loa: Astronauts obtained this detailed image of the summit caldera of Mauna Loa volcano, called Mokuaweoweo Caldera. Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on our planet—the summit elevation is 4,170 m (over 13,600 ft), but the volcano’s summit rises 9 km above the sea floor. The sharp features of the summit caldera and lava flows that drain outward from the summit are tribute to the fact that Mauna Loa is one of the Earth’s most active volcanoes. The most recent eruption was in 1984. The straight line the cuts through the center of the crater from top to bottom is a rift zone—an area that pulls apart as magma reaches the surface. A weather observatory run by NOAA’s Climate Monitoring & Diagnostics Lab is on the volcano’s north slope at 11,000 ft (3397 m). This facility, known as the Mauna Loa Observatory, is the site where scientists have documented the constantly increasing concentrations of global atmospheric carbon dioxide. Other resources about Mauna Loa: http://wwwhvo.wr.usgs.gov/maunaloa/ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/obop/mlo/
ISS005-E-5419	Hayman Fire and Others Scorch Western U.S.: This photograph taken by the new International Space Station crew on June 18, 2002, shows the Hayman Fire burning in the foothills southwest of Denver. Astronauts use a variety of lenses and look angles as their orbits pass over wildfires to document the long-distance movements of smoke from the fires as well as details of the burning areas. In this perspective view, you can see Littleton, Chatfield Lake and the Arkansas River.
ISS005-E-5416	Hayman Fire and Others Scorch Western U.S.: This photograph taken by the new International Space Station crew on June 18, 2002, shows the eastern flank of the Hayman Fire burning in the foothills southwest of Denver. Astronauts use a variety of lenses and look angles as their orbits pass over wildfires to document the long-distance movements of smoke from the fires as well as details of the burning areas. In this detail view, you can see multiple smoke source points as the fire moves across the rough terrain.
ISS005-E-21125	Lake Tandou, New South Wales, Australia: Sections of Australia are experiencing their worst drought in 100 years. In the outback of New South Wales, farms along the Darling River have received only 10 inches of rain in the past two years, forcing farmers to sell their livestock and let fields lie fallow. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station documented conditions in Australia last week, including these images of Lake Tandou in the Menindee Lake system along the Darling River. The Menindee Lakes are part of an innovative water conservation project. Although this lakebed is protected from flooding and is used for agriculture (primarily cotton, sunflower and grains), it is one of several interconnected lakes that sit along the lower Darling River like a string of pearls. Other lakes function as water capture reservoirs to support controlled water flow for environmental and agricultural needs down river, and to provide flood mitigation. The original water management scheme was initiated in 1949. Several recent policies have established sustainable management of the regional water supplies, including caps on water diversions and increased water allocations and flow regimes for environmental conservation — the region supports a very high biodiversity. The area is also near the center of the aboriginal Baakantji country, as they traveled up and down the Darling River. This image is a mosaic of images ISS005-E-21125, ISS005-E-21126 and ISS005-E-21127
ISS005-E-20451	Emi Koussi Volcano, Chad, North Africa: Emi Koussi is a high volcano that lies at the south end of the Tibesti Mountains in the central Sahara in northern Chad. The volcano is one of several in the Tibesti massif, and reaches 3415 m in altitude, rising 2.3 km above the surrounding sandstone plains. The volcano is 65 km wide. This view of the Emi Koussi caldera was taken with an 800 mm lens on November 21, 2002. It is detailed to the point that it doesn’t include the entire 10-km diameter of the caldera, but reveals individual lava strata within the walls of the summit cliffs. Nested within the main caldera is a smaller crater that contains white salts of a dry lake at its lowest point. Here too, strata are visible in the walls of the smaller crater. The smaller crater is surrounded by a region of darker rocks—a geologically young dome of lava studded with several small circular volcanic vents. Emi Koussi has been used as a close analog to the famous Martian volcano Elysium Mons. One of the most important morphological differences between volcanoes on Mars and Earth is the widespread furrowing of the surface due to flowing water on terrestrial volcanoes. The furrows are shallow valleys. Larger channels have a different origin. Major channels can be seen on volcanoes on both planets and indicate low points in caldera rims where lava spilled out of pre-collapse craters.
ISS005-E-11189	Well-head flare, Calanscio Sand Sea, Libya: A plume of black smoke blowing westward is silhouetted against linear dunes in the great sand sea of northeast Libya. Smoke from flares at remote well heads is commonly seen by astronauts flying over the Sahara Desert. The plume dispersal pattern visible at the left edge of the image may be due to upper-level winds or gravitational settling of heavier particulates. The regular pattern of linear dunes is generated by two major winds: the dominant north wind (north is towards the top right) determines the orientation of the sand dunes. Gentler easterly winds, as were blowing when this view was taken, make the dunes asymmetric, with a gentle windward (west) slope and an oversteepened downwind slope. Some oversteepened slopes even cast shadows in the early morning light. One mound of sand (top right), due north of the well head, does not fit the pattern of linear dunes. This type is known as a star dune.

This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Astromaterials Research & Exploration Science Directorate. Recommended Citation: Image Science and Analysis Laboratory, NASA-Johnson Space Center. "The Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth." .
	NASA Responsible Official: Tracy Calhoun Curator: jsc-earthweb@mail.nasa.gov Contributors: Earth Sciences Web Team	National Aeronautics and Space Administration Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center	International Space Station National Laboratory Last Update:
Server: 1