Earth from Space - Image Information


	Image Information

Display a Screen Layout for Printing


			Photo #: ISS007-E-14867 Date: Sep. 2003 Geographic Region: NEW CALEDONIA Feature: NOUMEA, CORAL REEFS, ISLANDS



	New Caledonia represents a nexus of cultures and resources. At its center is Grande Terre, the third largest island in the Pacific. The indigenous population is Melanesian, with a Polynesian minority, but New Caledonia remains a French territory. A prime tourist destination, the island supports the second largest barrier reef in the world (over 1300 km long) with one of the highest levels of biodiversity.. The mountains forming the spine of the island of Grande Terre contain large reserves of nickel and chromium, and New Caledonia mines are one of the world's greatest producers of nickel. The combination of natural resources provides unique opportunities for understanding the impact of heavy development. Open mining activity leads to sedimentation in streams and estuaries as well as high concentrations of transition metals (chromium and nickel)--all of which can affect the health of reefs and reef organisms. This image shows details of New Caledonia's main city, Noumea, which is built on a peninsula that juts into the lagoon on the southwest side of the island. The reefs here face localized problems from pollution and overfishing. The tourism industry is very important to the economy of Noumea, with extensive hotel development in the city and along the southeast coast of Grand Terre. The picture shows how urban development extends to the steep slopes of the coastal hills.

Images:	All Available Images Low-Resolution 91k
Mission:	ISS007
Roll - Frame:	E - 14867
Geographical Name:	NEW CALEDONIA
Features:	NOUMEA, CORAL REEFS, ISLANDS
Center Lat x Lon:	22.5S x 166.5E
Film Exposure:		N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP:	10
Camera:	E4
Camera Tilt:	13	LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length:	400
Nadir to Photo Center Direction:	N	The direction from the nadir to the center point, N=North, S=South, E=East, W=West
Stereo?:		Y=Yes there is an adjacent picture of the same area, N=No there isn't
Orbit Number:	3486
Date:	20030913	YYYYMMDD
Time:	221701	GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat:	23.3S	Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon:	166.4E	Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth:	59	Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude:	206	nautical miles
Sun Elevation:	44	Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views:	COAST, ISLAND, PENINSULA
Water Views:	LAGOON, REEF
Atmosphere Views:
Man Made Views:	MINING, POLLUTION
City Views:

Photo is not associated with any sequences

NASA
Home Page

This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Earth Science & Remote Sensing Unit, ARES Division, Exploration Integration Science Directorate.