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  Image: Geographic Location Direction Photo #: ISS024-E-12425 Date: Aug. 2010
Geographic Region: CHILE
Feature: CERRO EL CONDOR VOLCANO, NEVADO OJOS DEL SALADO VOLCANO, GREEN LAKE

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  Volcanic Landscapes, Central Andes

The landscape in the central Andes Mountains, near the border between Chile and Argentina, is dominated by volcanoes and associated landforms. Layers of older sedimentary rocks are visible to the upper middle, and many volcanic cones show grooves where water has eroded the rock to form gullies. Such erosion has occurred since the host volcano was built up, indicating that most volcanoes in this view have been inactive for centuries or millennia.

A few volcanoes exhibit much less erosion, and even show tongues of dark, recent lava flows (upper left). Two of these volcanoes, Cerro el Condor and Peinado, have likely erupted within the past 12,000 years.

Also visible is the world's highest active volcano, Nevado Ojos del Salado, with a summit 6,887 meters (22,600 feet) above sea level. The most recent confirmed eruption has been dated to the year 700 (+/- 300 years), but minor eruptive activity may have occurred as recently as 1993.

Stratovolcanoes such as Cerro el Condor, Peinado, and Nevado Ojos del Salado are formed partly by the buildup of lava flows and partly by the buildup of explosively vented material dropping back down onto the surface. One material associated with these eruptions is welded tuff, formed by molten and fragmented rock that accumulates on the ground and later solidifies. A large tuff sheet is visible at the top left. Formed very rapidly, these sheets have been termed "instant landscapes." The Andean volcanic system has been so active that the origin of many tuffs cannot be pinpointed because the source vents have been overprinted by subsequent volcanic events.

The landscape also shows that the erosive work of rivers and glaciers in the region is slower than the upward building processes of the volcanoes. The bright blue lake -- nearly 7 km (4.3 miles) long -- near the center of the image is Laguna Verde. This and other less obvious lakes indicate that water from snowmelt or direct precipitation is unable to reach the sea, being impounded in the depressions between the volcanic edifices.
 
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Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 283k
Mission: ISS024  
Roll - Frame: E - 12425
Geographical Name: CHILE  
Features: CERRO EL CONDOR VOLCANO, NEVADO OJOS DEL SALADO VOLCANO, GREEN LAKE  
Center Lat x Lon: 27S x 68.5W
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 10
 
Camera: N2
 
Camera Tilt: 25   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 80  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: W   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: 3390  
 
Date: 20100822   YYYYMMDD
Time: 124452   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 27.1S  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 67W  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 62   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 193   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 23   Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views: EROSION, VOLCANO  
Water Views: LAKE  
Atmosphere Views:  
Man Made Views:  
City Views:  
Photo is not associated with any sequences


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