ISS001-421-24
| NASA Photo ID | ISS001-421-24 |
| Focal Length | mm |
| Date taken | 2001.03.03 |
| Time taken | 22:42:34 GMT |
Resolutions offered for this image:
540 x 333 pixels 540 x 672 pixels 3070 x 2044 pixels 515 x 342 pixels
540 x 333 pixels 540 x 672 pixels 3070 x 2044 pixels 515 x 342 pixels
Cloud masks available for this image:
Spacecraft nadir point: 25.6° S, 40.6° W
Photo center point:
Photo center point by machine learning:
Photo center point:
Photo center point by machine learning:
Nadir to Photo Center: Northeast
Spacecraft Altitude: 205 nautical miles (380km)
Country or Geographic Name: | ATMOSPHERIC LIMB |
Features: | ATMOSPHERIC LIMB |
| Features Found Using Machine Learning: | |
Cloud Cover Percentage: | |
Sun Elevation Angle: | -21° |
Sun Azimuth: | 251° |
Camera: | Nikon 35mm film camera |
Focal Length: | mm |
Camera Tilt: | High Oblique |
Format: | 5069: Kodak Elite 100S, E6 Reversal, Replaces Lumiere, Warmer in tone vs. Lumiere |
Film Exposure: | |
| Additional Information | |
| Width | Height | Annotated | Cropped | Purpose | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 540 pixels | 333 pixels | No | Yes | NASA's Earth Observatory web site | Download Image |
| 540 pixels | 672 pixels | No | Yes | NASA's Earth Observatory web site | Download Image |
| 3070 pixels | 2044 pixels | No | No | Download Image | |
| 515 pixels | 342 pixels | No | No | Download Image |
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Image Caption: Some of the most breathtaking views of Earth taken from space are those that capture our planet's limb. When viewed from the side, the Earth looks like a flat circle, and the atmosphere appears like a halo around it. This glowing halo is known as the limb. Viewed from satellites, space shuttles, and even the moon, the image of this luminous envelope of gases shielding the life on our planet from the dark, cold space beyond rarely fails to fascinate us.
The two images above show the Earth's limb captured by astronauts on the International Space Station. The first is a view of the limb at sunset. The surface of the Earth appears as a dark disk at the bottom with the blackness of outer space draped over the top. Below that image is a glimpse of the barren moon through the Earth's limb. With no atmosphere, and therefore no limb of its own, the edge of the moon arcs crisply against the backdrop of space.
Views of the Earth's limb are as functional as they are beautiful. The Shuttle Columbia (STS 107) carried the Shuttle Ozone Limb Sounding Experiment-2 (SOLSE-2) as a demonstration of new limb-viewing technology that will be used on the next generation of meteorological satellites to monitor ozone change.
The two images above show the Earth's limb captured by astronauts on the International Space Station. The first is a view of the limb at sunset. The surface of the Earth appears as a dark disk at the bottom with the blackness of outer space draped over the top. Below that image is a glimpse of the barren moon through the Earth's limb. With no atmosphere, and therefore no limb of its own, the edge of the moon arcs crisply against the backdrop of space.
Views of the Earth's limb are as functional as they are beautiful. The Shuttle Columbia (STS 107) carried the Shuttle Ozone Limb Sounding Experiment-2 (SOLSE-2) as a demonstration of new limb-viewing technology that will be used on the next generation of meteorological satellites to monitor ozone change.
