Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

STS-092 Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

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STS092-722-68 ISS and Richat Dome, Mauritania: To the right of the International Space Station, the circular feature in the Mauritanian desert is Richat dome. The 24-mile- (39-km)-wide structure was formed by intrusion of molten rock at depth, which domed the overlying rock layers upward. Rock layers of differing compositions weather away at different rates, so that concentric ridges have developed within the structure.

STS092-703-77 North Island, New Zealand: Ruapehu (snowy peak) and Tongariro are active volcanoes that line along a northeasterly line through North Island, New Zealand; White Island (with plume) in the Bay of Plenty is the northernmost subaerial volcano of the line. As the Pacific plate descends beneath the eastern edge of North Island, the crust of the overriding Australian/Indian plate is stretched. Lava rises through the weakened crust and the line of active volcanoes develops. Geothermal energy from volcanic heat is used to generate power for North Island.

STS092-711-21 Wellington, North Island, New Zealand: The city of Wellington is on Port Nicholson bay at the southern tip of North Island and lies astride a strand of the Marlborough fault zone (sharp linear break between darker vegetated and light-colored areas). The structural style of the Australian/Pacific tectonic plate boundary changes in the region of the Marlborough zone: the Hikurangi trench system (subduction zone) along the east side of North Island gives way to the Alpine fault system (transform zone) through South Island. Earthquakes are common in the Wellington area, as activity on faults of either the Alpine or the Hikurangi system can result in ground movement in the Marlborough zone.

STS092-703-86 Grand Canyon, Arizona: The Grand Canyon is the centerpiece of this northeasterly view across the Colorado Plateau. The 1000-m-deep canyon was carved during the past two million years, mainly during the Pleistocene period. Lake Powell is at the northeastern end of the canyon; Lake Mead (left of center) is at the southwestern end, with the city of Las Vegas just west of the lake. From Lake Mead the Colorado River flows southward, defining the California-Arizona border; small lakes and irrigated agricultural lands mark the river course. Within the unvegetated uplands at right center are the darker, forested areas of Black Mesa (ragged outline) and the Chuska Mts. of Arizona and New Mexico.

STS092-723-79 Gulf of Tadjourah, Djibouti: The Gulf of Tadjourah is in the Afar region of the Horn of Africa, where three great rift systems interact - the Gulf of Aden, Red Sea, and Ethiopian rifts; the Gulf is an extension of the Aden rift. Lake Assal (top center) occupies a rift valley and is the lowest point in Africa (168 m below sea level); a natural barrier of young lava flows (less than 0.3 million years old) keeps marine waters of the Gulf of Tadjourah from filling the depression. Sea water does occasionally spill into Lake Assal, then evaporates to leave highly reflective salt deposits on the lake floor, well below sea level. The dark, linear features in the lava fields are fault escarpments that cast shadows in the afternoon light; particularly good examples can be seen west (left) of Lake Assal.

STS092-712-28 Red Sea Reefs: Along the Saudi Arabian coast of the Red Sea (near side) is the Farasan Archipelago; across the Sea, off the coast of Eritrea, is the Dahlak Archipelago. Corals and other marine organisms have colonized the margins of submerged fault blocks of the Red Sea rift; thus, the reefs show the same northerly alignment as the coastline and the faults onshore. A national marine park has been proposed for the Dahlak islands, an area with abundant and diverse fish life, as well as breeding populations of sea turtles. The Farasan Archipelago, which covers about 600 square kilometers, hosts the most extensive stand of mangroves in the Red Sea, and seagrass beds fringing the islands are important nursery grounds for Spanish mackeral.

STS092-713-32 Smog Layer Over Upstate New York: The STS-92 Space Shuttle astronauts photographed upstate New York at sunset on October 21, 2000. Water bodies (Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Finger Lakes, the St. Lawrence and Niagara Rivers) are highlighted by sunglint (sun reflecting off the water surface), making for a dramatic and unusual regional view.
The photograph was taken looking toward the southwest from southern Canada, and captures a regional smog layer extending across central New York, western Lake Erie and Ohio, and further west. The layer of atmospheric pollution layer is capped by an atmospheric inversion, which is marked by the layer of clouds at the top of the photograph. The astronauts were able to document this smog event from a variety of vantage points as they orbited over the northeastern U.S. and southern Canada.

STS092-324-26 Smoky Air over North Carolina and Virginia: This photograph taken from the Space Shuttle Discovery was taken at a slightly oblique look angle to better view air pollution and other atmospheric features. The photograph was taken with the Shuttle in a position over the Atlantic Ocean looking back toward the North Carolina and Virginia coast. The astronauts used a 35 mm camera and standard color film. The section of coast shown stretches from the Delmarva Peninsula on the right to beyond Charleston, South Carolina on the left.
On October 23, 2000, high pressure centered over the northeastern U.S. had created a capping inversion for aerosols. Forest fire smoke and industrial air pollution accumulated under the inversion. The inversion pattern is stronger inland, and the aerosols are being banked against the Piedmont. Relatively clearer air is flowing from the ocean over the Carolina coastal plain. Small smoke plumes from individual fires can also be seen on the ground stretching from central Virginia to Raleigh, NC.

STS092-325-35 Sunset with waning moon over Eastern Europe: This photograph was taken when the Space Shuttle was in over Eastern Europe on October 23, 2000. The sun is sun setting at approximately 5:50 pm local time, and the moon phase is waning toward a new moon on October 27.

STS092-336-4 Antenna with the Straits of Gibraltar in the background: This shot of the SGANT (Space to Ground Antenna) Dish on the international space station also shows the Straits of Gibraltar in the background. This narrow channel connects the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. It is 36 miles (58 km) long and narrows to 8 miles (13 km) in width between Point Marroquí, Spain, and Point Cires, Morocco. Oceanographers are interested in the flow through this strait because the Mediterranean outflow plays an important role in the circulation of the North Atlantic Ocean, and determine the mass, heat, and salt balances of the Mediterranean. The flow is complex because waters are confined in the strait and internal waves formed can have displacements of up to 50 m.

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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: Susan Runco

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

STS092-722-68	ISS and Richat Dome, Mauritania: To the right of the International Space Station, the circular feature in the Mauritanian desert is Richat dome. The 24-mile- (39-km)-wide structure was formed by intrusion of molten rock at depth, which domed the overlying rock layers upward. Rock layers of differing compositions weather away at different rates, so that concentric ridges have developed within the structure.
STS092-703-77	North Island, New Zealand: Ruapehu (snowy peak) and Tongariro are active volcanoes that line along a northeasterly line through North Island, New Zealand; White Island (with plume) in the Bay of Plenty is the northernmost subaerial volcano of the line. As the Pacific plate descends beneath the eastern edge of North Island, the crust of the overriding Australian/Indian plate is stretched. Lava rises through the weakened crust and the line of active volcanoes develops. Geothermal energy from volcanic heat is used to generate power for North Island.
STS092-711-21	Wellington, North Island, New Zealand: The city of Wellington is on Port Nicholson bay at the southern tip of North Island and lies astride a strand of the Marlborough fault zone (sharp linear break between darker vegetated and light-colored areas). The structural style of the Australian/Pacific tectonic plate boundary changes in the region of the Marlborough zone: the Hikurangi trench system (subduction zone) along the east side of North Island gives way to the Alpine fault system (transform zone) through South Island. Earthquakes are common in the Wellington area, as activity on faults of either the Alpine or the Hikurangi system can result in ground movement in the Marlborough zone.
STS092-703-86	Grand Canyon, Arizona: The Grand Canyon is the centerpiece of this northeasterly view across the Colorado Plateau. The 1000-m-deep canyon was carved during the past two million years, mainly during the Pleistocene period. Lake Powell is at the northeastern end of the canyon; Lake Mead (left of center) is at the southwestern end, with the city of Las Vegas just west of the lake. From Lake Mead the Colorado River flows southward, defining the California-Arizona border; small lakes and irrigated agricultural lands mark the river course. Within the unvegetated uplands at right center are the darker, forested areas of Black Mesa (ragged outline) and the Chuska Mts. of Arizona and New Mexico.
STS092-723-79	Gulf of Tadjourah, Djibouti: The Gulf of Tadjourah is in the Afar region of the Horn of Africa, where three great rift systems interact - the Gulf of Aden, Red Sea, and Ethiopian rifts; the Gulf is an extension of the Aden rift. Lake Assal (top center) occupies a rift valley and is the lowest point in Africa (168 m below sea level); a natural barrier of young lava flows (less than 0.3 million years old) keeps marine waters of the Gulf of Tadjourah from filling the depression. Sea water does occasionally spill into Lake Assal, then evaporates to leave highly reflective salt deposits on the lake floor, well below sea level. The dark, linear features in the lava fields are fault escarpments that cast shadows in the afternoon light; particularly good examples can be seen west (left) of Lake Assal.
STS092-712-28	Red Sea Reefs: Along the Saudi Arabian coast of the Red Sea (near side) is the Farasan Archipelago; across the Sea, off the coast of Eritrea, is the Dahlak Archipelago. Corals and other marine organisms have colonized the margins of submerged fault blocks of the Red Sea rift; thus, the reefs show the same northerly alignment as the coastline and the faults onshore. A national marine park has been proposed for the Dahlak islands, an area with abundant and diverse fish life, as well as breeding populations of sea turtles. The Farasan Archipelago, which covers about 600 square kilometers, hosts the most extensive stand of mangroves in the Red Sea, and seagrass beds fringing the islands are important nursery grounds for Spanish mackeral.
STS092-713-32	Smog Layer Over Upstate New York: The STS-92 Space Shuttle astronauts photographed upstate New York at sunset on October 21, 2000. Water bodies (Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Finger Lakes, the St. Lawrence and Niagara Rivers) are highlighted by sunglint (sun reflecting off the water surface), making for a dramatic and unusual regional view. The photograph was taken looking toward the southwest from southern Canada, and captures a regional smog layer extending across central New York, western Lake Erie and Ohio, and further west. The layer of atmospheric pollution layer is capped by an atmospheric inversion, which is marked by the layer of clouds at the top of the photograph. The astronauts were able to document this smog event from a variety of vantage points as they orbited over the northeastern U.S. and southern Canada.
STS092-324-26	Smoky Air over North Carolina and Virginia: This photograph taken from the Space Shuttle Discovery was taken at a slightly oblique look angle to better view air pollution and other atmospheric features. The photograph was taken with the Shuttle in a position over the Atlantic Ocean looking back toward the North Carolina and Virginia coast. The astronauts used a 35 mm camera and standard color film. The section of coast shown stretches from the Delmarva Peninsula on the right to beyond Charleston, South Carolina on the left. On October 23, 2000, high pressure centered over the northeastern U.S. had created a capping inversion for aerosols. Forest fire smoke and industrial air pollution accumulated under the inversion. The inversion pattern is stronger inland, and the aerosols are being banked against the Piedmont. Relatively clearer air is flowing from the ocean over the Carolina coastal plain. Small smoke plumes from individual fires can also be seen on the ground stretching from central Virginia to Raleigh, NC.
STS092-325-35	Sunset with waning moon over Eastern Europe: This photograph was taken when the Space Shuttle was in over Eastern Europe on October 23, 2000. The sun is sun setting at approximately 5:50 pm local time, and the moon phase is waning toward a new moon on October 27.
STS092-336-4	Antenna with the Straits of Gibraltar in the background: This shot of the SGANT (Space to Ground Antenna) Dish on the international space station also shows the Straits of Gibraltar in the background. This narrow channel connects the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. It is 36 miles (58 km) long and narrows to 8 miles (13 km) in width between Point Marroquí, Spain, and Point Cires, Morocco. Oceanographers are interested in the flow through this strait because the Mediterranean outflow plays an important role in the circulation of the North Atlantic Ocean, and determine the mass, heat, and salt balances of the Mediterranean. The flow is complex because waters are confined in the strait and internal waves formed can have displacements of up to 50 m.

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: Susan Runco 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