< STS044-71-37 >

Browse image
Resolutions offered for this image:
5700 x 6000 pixels 500 x 526 pixels 640 x 480 pixels
Cloud masks available for this image:

Spacecraft nadir point: 28.0° N, 35.3° W

Photo center point:

Photo center point by machine learning:

Nadir to Photo Center:

Spacecraft Altitude: 210 nautical miles (389km)

Body: Earth
Click for a map
Width Height Annotated Cropped Purpose Links
5700 pixels 6000 pixels No No Download Image
500 pixels 526 pixels No No Download Image
640 pixels 480 pixels No No Download Image
Other options available:
Download Packaged File
Download a Google Earth KML for this Image
View photo footprint information
No GeoTIFF is available for this photo.
Image Caption: STS-44 Earth observation taken aboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104, shows twilight over the Atlantic Ocean. OV-104 was at a point in the north Atlantic located at 28 degrees north latitude and 37 degrees west longitude. The spacecraft has just passed sundown on the Earth's surface, but it was still daylight at an altitude of 195 nautical miles. During the mission, the astronauts noted that the limb of the Earth displayed a more purplish tint instead of its normal blue. This effect, according to NASA scientists, is attributed to the high altitude residue (mostly sulfuric acid particles) from the Mount Pinatubo eruptions of mid June 1991. Note the broad band of twilight in the center of the image. This band is another indicator of the upper atmospheric scattering of sunlight caused by this layer of haze that exists between 20 and 30 kilometers above Earth. Sunlight highlights the empty payload bay (PLB), the vertical tail, and orbital maneuvering system (OMS) pods against the black