ISS002-E-9767
NASA Photo ID | ISS002-E-9767 |
Focal Length | 800mm |
Date taken | 2001.08.08 |
Time taken | 21:14:15 GMT |
Resolutions offered for this image:
540 x 334 pixels 540 x 672 pixels 3060 x 2092 pixels 640 x 437 pixels
540 x 334 pixels 540 x 672 pixels 3060 x 2092 pixels 640 x 437 pixels
Cloud masks available for this image:
Country or Geographic Name: | ATMOSPHERIC LIMB |
Features: | ATMOSPHERIC LIMB, MOON |
Features Found Using Machine Learning: | MOON, PAN- |
Cloud Cover Percentage: | |
Sun Elevation Angle: | 36° |
Sun Azimuth: | 354° |
Camera: | Kodak DCS460 Electronic Still Camera |
Focal Length: | 800mm |
Camera Tilt: | |
Format: | 3060E: 3060 x 2036 pixel CCD, RGBG array |
Film Exposure: | |
Additional Information | |
Width | Height | Annotated | Cropped | Purpose | Links |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
540 pixels | 334 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 |
3060 pixels | 2092 pixels | No | No | Download Image | |
640 pixels | 437 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.