The Earth From Space

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Earth from Space: Swamped down under

Click on the image for high resolution version

7 January 2011

This image acquired by Envisat on 2 January shows the inundated areas currently causing misery in Australia's northeastern state of Queensland.

Over the last days, these floodwaters have left an area the size of France and Germany put together under a sea of muddy water – Australia's worst flood disaster in 50 years.

The image shows an area measuring approximately 450 km from east to west and about 350 km north to south. Although much of the ground is shrouded by cloud, the murky brown river flood water can clearly be seen.

Worst hit is the coastal town of Rockhampton which is almost cut off by the flooded Fitzroy River as it makes it way towards the ocean. The river water is thought to have peaked on 5 January at 9.2 m but more rain is expected. The floods have forced people out of their homes, ruined crops and caused damage to Queensland's transport infrastructure.

This image was acquired by Envisat’s Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer on 2 January at a resolution of 300 m.

ESA published an image of the same area on 10 December 2010 before the flood, which is interesting for comparison.

Source: ESA - Observing the Earth - Image of the Week

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Earth from Space: Berlin snowbound

Click on the image for high resolution version

14 January 2011

This wintery ALOS image captures the German capital city of Berlin surrounded by snow. Home to 3.4 million people, Berlin has the second largest population (within city limits) in the European Union after London, UK.

Berlin lies in northeastern Germany, in the wide glacial valley of the Spree River, which can be seen in the image flowing east to west through the city.

Berlin's three airports can be seen in the image. Tegel airport, which is the long thin structure to the northwest of the centre, the old Tempelhof airport is the large hexagonal structure just south of the city and the new Brandenburg International, which is being developed on the site of Schönefeld airport and set to replace the three old airports, lies to the southwest covered by snow.

The Tiergarten, which can be seen on the south bank of the River Spree, is one of Europe's largest inner-city parks. The area around Berlin, however, is renowned for forests and lakes. Covering around 7.5 sq km, Müggelsee is the biggest of these lakes, in the eastern suburbs.

Winters in Berlin are typically cold. Although this winter is proving challenging, that of 2009–2010 also saw an abundance of snow and ice.

This image was captured on 20 December 2009 by the Japanese ALOS satellite with its Advanced Visible and Near Infrared Radiometer type-2 (AVNIR-2) instrument. The instrument is designed to chart land cover and vegetation in visible and near-infrared spectral bands, at a resolution of 10 metres.

In addition to AVNIR-2, ALOS also carries the Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR) instrument – a microwave radar instrument that can acquire observations during both day and night and through any weather conditions – and the Panchromatic Remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping (PRISM), which can observe selected areas in three dimensions, down to a 2.5-m spatial resolution.

ESA supports ALOS as a Third Party Mission, which means ESA utilises its multi-mission European ground infrastructure and expertise to acquire, process and distribute data from the satellite to its wide user community.

Source: ESA - Observing the Earth - Image of the Week

Edited January 15, 2011 by Waspie_Dwarf
corrected title.

[AIMP]

swamped down under and the eye of africa are awesome. keep these sick pictures coming man.

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 14, 2011 - Phytoplankton bloom off the coast of Namibia

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/09/2010

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

On January 9, 2011, the waters off the Namibian coast appeared to be painted with spectacular swirls and swaths of iridescent blues and greens. These brilliant colors are from phytoplankton, which are blooming abundantly in the nutrient rich waters of the upwelling of the Benguela current. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite captured this true-color image that same day.

Eastern boundary current, such as the Benguela, are relatively shallow, broad and slow-flowing currents which are found on the eastern side of oceanic basins, and adjacent to the western coasts of continents. In these areas, coastal upwelling - the rising of water from the ocean floor – brings cold, nutrient rich waters towards the surface. As waters rise, they mix with warmer water and are illuminated by light near the surface. The combination of nutrition, increasing warmth, light and oxygen-rich waters, create perfect conditions for the growth of phytoplankton. Since these small organisms form the bottom of the marine food chain, these regions also support rich and diverse marine life.

There are four major eastern boundary currents – the Benguela, the Canary, the Peru-Humboldt and the California Currents. Each is associated with an upwelling that supports highly productive fisheries. Although these four upwelling regions account for only 0.1 % of the world ocean, they account for 5 % of global primary production and 17 % of global fish catch. These upwellings also give rise to frequent and beautiful blooms of phytoplankton. (3,700 meters) stretching west-northwest 130 nautical miles (240 kilometers) from the volcano.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 15, 2011 - Snow across the southeastern United States

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/13/2010

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

The southern United States experienced widespread and heavy snowfall, sleet, and freezing rain on January 9 and 10, 2011. Six southern states declared states of emergency after widespread snowfall of 4-8 inches (10-20 cm). Thousands of flights were cancelled at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest. The combination of snow, freezing rain, and prolonged below freezing temperatures in Atlanta closed schools, government offices and many businesses for most of the week. The storm continued north along the East Coast and produced heavy snowfall in the northeast United States on January 12 and 13.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image on January 13, 2011. The swath of snow cover left by this storm stretched from northeastern Texas to the Carolinas. Brighter areas of snow cover are found in the Delta region of eastern Arkansas and northwestern Mississippi, which lacks the tree cover that is prevalent over most of the Southeast. In many other areas, trees protrude above the snow and appear darker to the satellite. The Arkansas and Mississippi Rivers are visible crossing the snow covered Delta.

Another area of bright snow is evident in the Tennessee River Valley of north central Alabama, where some of the heaviest snowfall occurred. As much as 7 inches (18 cm) of snow remained near Huntsville, Alabama, on January 13. Two darker areas in northern Alabama are the Bankhead National Forest (south of the Tennessee River) and the heavily forested Cumberland Plateau (north of the river, extending into Tennessee).

Low cloud cover appears over the snow in Tennessee, and high cirrus clouds are evident from Louisiana to southern Georgia. Cloud streets over the Gulf of Mexico (visible in the large image) were produced by low-level instability as the cold air in the wake of the storm passed over the warm waters of the gulf.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Northwestern Algeria

download large image (5 MB, JPEG) December 17, 2010

download GeoTIFF file (50 MB, TIFF) December 17, 2010

Most of Algeria is desert, home to Saharan sand seas. Along the Mediterranean coast, however, hills and mountains predominate, and mild, wet winters green up parts of the landscape. The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured this natural-color image of Algeria’s hilly, vegetated northwest on December 17, 2010.

The Oued Chelif flows westward through this area, taking a meandering path toward the sea, with river banks and valleys lined with vegetation. Irrigated fields—some green, some brown—stretch away from the river, with many fields extending to the bases of nearby hills. Although considerably greener than the desert in the south, this part of Algeria is not exactly carpeted in green. Vegetated areas alternate with bare rock, creating a mixture of green, brown, brick, and beige.

North of the river lies a series of peaks, Djebel Meni among them. The rocks of these hills have proven valuable to geologists in understanding the history of the Mediterranean Sea, specifically a period known as the Messinian Salinity Crisis, or Messinian Event.

Between 5 and 6 million years ago, what is now the Strait of Gibraltar closed. The closing sealed off the Mediterranean from the world ocean, and the region’s arid climate substantially dried out around the basin. Wetter conditions eventually supplied the region with increasing amounts of fresh water.

When Gibraltar reopened, ocean water inundated the Chelif Basin, an assemblage of rock layers in northwestern Algeria that contains a continuous record of sediments deposited during the Messinian Event. Studying the composition and fossils in those rocks has enabled researchers to picture how the Mediterranean Sea reconnected with the ocean.

References

CIA World Factbook. (2010, December 29). Algeria. Accessed January 14, 2011.

Messinian Online. (2003). Accessed January 14, 2011.

Rouchy, J.M., Caruso, A., Pierre, C., Blanc-Valleron, M.-M., Bassetti, M.A. (2007). The end of the Messinian salinity crisis: Evidences from the Chelif Basin (Algeria). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 254(3–4), 386–417.

Wikipedia. (2011, January 14). Messinian Salinity Crisis. Accessed January 14, 2011.

NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 team. Caption by Michon Scott.

Instrument: EO-1 - ALI

Source: NASA - Earth Observatory - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 16, 2011 - Dust and fires across Central Africa

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/9/2011

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

Dust mixed with smoke across central Africa in early January 2011. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image on January 9, 2011. Red dots indicate hotspots associated with fires.

Dust from the Bodele Depression, northeast of Lake Chad, blew toward the southwest, leaving dust over the lake and parts of Niger and Nigeria. At the same time, fires burned across central Africa (likely set for clearing agricultural land) and mingled smoke with the dust.

Saharan dust often travels across the Atlantic Ocean. Although the dust can cause respiratory irritation and coral damage, it also provides valuable soil to the New World. In fact, a 2006 study found that Amazon rainforest owes much of its soil to the Bodele Depression.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

North Col of Mount Everest

Posted January 17, 2011

download large image (547 KB, JPEG) December 17, 2010

This astronaut photograph highlights the northern approach to Mount Everest from Tibet (China). Known as the northeast ridge route, climbers travel along the East Rongbuk Glacier (image lower left) to camp at the base of Changtse mountain. From this point at approximately 6,100 meters (20,000 feet) above sea level (asl), climbers ascend the North Col—a sharp-edged pass carved by glaciers, at image center—to reach a series of progressively higher camps along the North Face of Everest. Climbers make their final push to the summit (just off the top edge of the image) from Camp VI at 8,230 meters (27,000 feet) altitude.

Located within the Himalaya mountain chain, Everest (or Sagarmatha in Nepali) is the Earth’s highest mountain, with its summit at 8,848 meters (29,029 feet) above sea level. Khumbutse mountain, visible at the lower right, has a summit elevation of 6,640 meters (21,785 feet) asl. While the near-nadir viewing angle—almost looking straight down from the International Space Station—tends to flatten the topography, astronauts have also taken images that highlight the rugged nature of the area.

Climbing to the summit of Everest requires much advance planning, conditioning, and situational awareness on the part of mountaineers to avoid potentially fatal consequences. As of 2010, there have been over 200 reported deaths. The numerous expeditions to reach the summit of Everest have produced significant trash and spent oxygen bottles at the various camps, leading the Nepalese government to impose rules requiring climbers to return with their gear and rubbish. Several “cleanup” expeditions have removed tons of material, including the remains of several climbers.

Astronaut photograph ISS026-E-15208 was acquired on January 6, 2011, with a Nikon D2Xs digital camera using an 800 mm lens, and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by the Expedition 26 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. Lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Caption by William L. Stefanov, NASA-JSC.

Instrument: ISS - Digital Camera

Source: NASA - Earth Observatory - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 17, 2011 - Central Mexico

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/10/2011

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

A clear, sunny afternoon painted the dramatic landscape of central Mexico with sharply-focused colors on January 10, 2011. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite passed overhead as the sun shone, capturing this true-color image.

Near the top of the image, a black boundary line has been overlain on the blue waters of the Rio Grande River, which forms the border between the state of Texas in the United States and the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, Mexico. In Mexico, this important waterway is called Rio Bravo del Norte, or simply Rio Bravo, and is an important source of water for agriculture.

The Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains line the western portion of Mexico. In the north, the mountains rise about 300 km inland from the Pacific Ocean, but approach to within 50 km at their southern extent. In the east, the Sierra Madre Oriental Mountains run over 1,000 km from north to south, progressively nearing the Gulf of Mexico at the southern terminus. They are home to the Sierra Madre Oriental pine-oak forests. Found in the higher elevations, this eco-region is richly biodiverse, containing twenty-three species of pine and about 200 species of oak. Although this eco-region contains over two-thirds of Mexico’s standing forest, in 2006 it was reported that all but 2% of the original old growth forest is gone. Overharvesting of this forest has led to the extinction of the imperial woodpecker, the largest woodpecker on Earth.

Between the two mountain ranges lies the Mexican altiplano. Several of Mexico’s most prominent cities, including Mexico City and Guadalajara are located in the southern altiplano valleys. Mexico City cannot be seen in this image, as it is located to the south. Guadalajara can be seen as a large gray smudge north of the slate blue Laguna de Chapala in the lower left of the image.

Numerous hotspots and smoke plumes can be seen near the southern border of the image. These are probably all from fires, although they lie in the northern section of the volcanic region of Mexico. In the lower left corner, haze can be seen moving over the Pacific Ocean, mostly likely arising from human activity as well as from smoke.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Flooding in Brisbane Suburbs

Posted January 18, 2011

download large image (3 MB, JPEG) acquired January 13, 2011

This astronaut photograph illustrates flooding in the suburbs of Brisbane, Australia, which experienced catastrophic flooding following unusually heavy rain on January 10, 2011. With soils already saturated from previous rainfall, eastward-draining surface flow caused the Brisbane River to flood—inundating an estimated 20,000 homes in suburbs of the capital city of Queensland. Other cities have also experienced damaging floods during heavy rainfall events this year.

The image, taken by astronauts on the International Space Station, highlights several suburbs along the Brisbane River in the southern part of the metropolitan area. The light-colored rooftops of residences and other structures contrast sharply with green vegetation and brown, sediment-laden floodwaters. Most visible low-lying areas are inundated, perhaps the most striking being Rocklea at image upper left. The suburb of Yeronga (lower left) also has regions of flooding, as does a park and golf course located along a bend in the Brisbane River to the south of St. Lucia (image center). Flooding becomes less apparent near the higher elevations of Mt. Coot-Tha (image right).

More images of this event in Natural Hazards

Astronaut photograph ISS026-E-17421 was acquired on January 13, 2011 with a Nikon D2Xs digital camera using an 800 mm lens, and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by the Expedition 26 crew. The image in this article has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. Lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Caption by William L. Stefanov, NASA-JSC.

Instrument: ISS - Digital Camera

Source: NASA - Earth Observatory - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 18, 2011 - Dust off the coast of Africa

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/10/2011

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

Dust from a powerful Saharan storm mixed with smoke from hundreds of fires to form a dense blanket in the skies above western Africa on January 13, 2011. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite captured this true-color image the same day.

The blanket is so thick that it completely obscures the land and ocean, leaving the vaguest impression of the coastline visible. Black borderlines have been overlain on the image, helping to discern the divisions between the countries. The ocean begins where the black line stops abruptly. From the west to east, the countries that lie on the coast are Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo and Benin. The inland countries, from west to east, are The Gambia, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

The presence of dust in the atmosphere has impressive and wide-spread implications for global climate and environment, affecting human health, soils, the ocean, the atmosphere and the climate. The study of the global dust budget is, therefore, an important branch of science.

The global dust budget attempts to account for the emission, atmospheric loading and deposition of the mineral dust aerosol on a global scale. It covers the location and strength of sources, transport paths, atmospheric distribution and deposition of mineral dust aerosol. Quantification and understanding of the global dust budget remains challenging, because direct observation of emission and deposition of a wide area is quite difficult. Satellite imagery and numerical simulations (dust transport models) are two primary methods used to come to a detailed understanding of the role of dust in the global environment.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Channel Beneath Pine Island Glacier

Posted January 19, 2011

Seafloor Bathymetry Model

acquired October 16, 2009 - November 9, 2009

Landsat Mosaic

In October 2009, a series of flights over Antarctica led to the discovery of a hidden feature beneath a floating ice shelf. Scientists participating in NASA’s Operation IceBridge mapped the water depth and seafloor topography beneath Pine Island Glacier and found a deepwater channel—a likely pathway for warm water to reach the glacier’s underbelly and melt it from below.

The top image above shows the bathymetry—the height and depth of the seafloor—beneath Pine Island Glacier. The deepest regions (navy blue) descend about 1,200 meters (3,900 feet) below sea level, while elevated seamounts and shoals (pale blue to white) are mostly 200 meters (650 feet) below sea level.

The second image shows Pine Island Glacier and the surrounding solid land in Antarctica as they appear from space. The view is a subset of the Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica, the first true-color, high-resolution visual map of Antarctica. The black, jagged outline in both images shows the “grounding line,” the point where the glacier is attached to the bedrock along the coast.

Operation IceBridge is a series of yearly flights to the Arctic and Antarctic by NASA research aircraft. The planes are equipped with laser and radar instruments that measure the elevation of the ice surface and the bedrock below, but neither can penetrate water.

That’s where the gravimeter, operated by Columbia University, comes into play. The instrument measures the gravitational pull of the different materials found beneath the plane's flight path. From the gravity field, researchers can differentiate between ice, water, and rock—which each have a different density—and then estimate the thickness of each material. From those measurements, IceBridge researchers pieced together this map of the thickness, or depth, of the water layer below Pine Island Glacier.

It’s not the first time scientists have seen below the ice shelf. Earlier in 2009, the United Kingdom’s National Oceanography Centre maneuvered an autonomous underwater vehicle below the shelf for a close-up look. But the robot encountered some high underwater ridges (seen in the topographic map above) and researchers surmised that the ridge extended the width of the shelf.

The newly discovered channel from IceBridge might help explain a lot of recent changes to the glacier, which drains more than 79 cubic kilometers (19 cubic miles) of ice per year from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. Warm, deep-ocean water has a clear path through the channel, where it can penetrate to the grounding line and weaken the ice shelf.

It’s unclear how or when the channel formed, or how many other ice shelves have similar features lurking below. But the new map should help scientists make better predictions about ice dynamics and how melting ice might contribute to sea level rise.

NASA Earth Observatory images created by Jesse Allen, based on a model by Michael Studinger of NASA IceBridge and gravity data from Columbia University. Caption by Kathryn Hansen and Michael Carlowicz.

Instrument: Aircraft Sensors

Source: NASA - Earth Observatory - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 19, 2011 - George V and Adelie Coasts, Antarctica

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/15/2011

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

Appearing much like a stark study in black and white, the deep, dark waters of the Southern Ocean form a sharp contrast to the brilliant white of the ice covering the George V and Adelie Coasts, Antarctica. The Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard the Aqua satellite captured this true-color image as it passed over the region on January 15, 2011.

The George V and Adelie Coasts are part of East Antarctica, an area that is almost entirely covered with ice year-round and is famous as a home for seabirds, penguins and seals, especially the Emperor Penguin, which breeds here in the winter.

The Adelie Coast lies to the left in this image. This ice-covered land is claimed by France, which maintains a research base, Dumont d’Urville Station, on a coastal island, as well as a small station, Charcot Station , on inland ice. Neither station is easily visible in this image.

The George V Coast, claimed by Australia, is famous for the Mertz Glacier, which can be seen at the center of the image as a smooth blue-white area to the left of a multi-fingered land mass. Just one year ago this glacier sported a long tongue which projected out into the waters of the Southern Ocean. In February of 2010, a massive iceberg named B-09B, comparable in size to the state of Rhode Island, collided with the glacier tongue and broke it off of the glacier. This glacial tongue formed a new iceberg which was nearly as large as B-09B. In this image, only a single large iceberg remains at the site of that collision.

In the ocean, bright white formations indicate icebergs which float offshore of both coasts. Delicate swirls of bluish-white further out to sea indicate thinner sea-ice, much of which will melt as the Antarctic summer progresses.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

Posted January 20, 2011

download large image (3 MB, JPEG) acquired January 13, 2011

download large image (9 MB, TIFF) acquired January 13, 2011

Part of the U.S. Virgin Islands, the island of St. John incorporates both a land-based national park and a sea-based national monument. First established in 1956 and later expanded by the U.S. Congress, the Virgin Islands National Park covers more than 7,000 acres (2,800 hectares). Coral Reef National Monument—established ten years ago this week by presidential proclamation—encompasses submerged lands within 3 miles (5 kilometers) of the St. John coast.

The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured this natural-color image of the eastern half of St. John on June 24, 2007. Settlements—marked by curving roads and light roofs—line the irregular coastline. The pinpoints of white in Coral Bay are probably boats.

The island’s interior is carpeted with varying shades of green. Temperatures vary little throughout the year, ranging between the low 80s to mid-90s Fahrenheit (mid-20s to mid-30s Celsius). Although the vegetation appears lush, much of it is second-generation growth, according to the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). During the colonial period, large swaths of the island were clear-cut to accommodate sugar cane production.

Along the fringes of the island, the complex seafloor of varying depths colors the water different shades of blue. The Coral Reef National Monument is comprised of interdependent and fragile ecosystems, including coral reefs, mangrove forests, and beds of seagrass. In addition to these ecosystems, the monument incorporates historical artifacts such as shipwrecks, which are rare in the Caribbean.

References

U.S. National Park Service. (2007, August). First Annual Centennial Strategy for Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument. (PDF file) Accessed January 18, 2011.

U.S. National Park Service. (2009, October 27). Virgin Islands National Park. Accessed January 18, 2011.

U.S. National Park Service. (2010, October 22). Coral Reef National Monument. Accessed January 18, 2011.

Uhler, J.W. (2007). Virgin Islands National Park Information Page. Accessed January 18, 2011

NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 team. Caption by Michon Scott.

Instrument: ISS - EO-1 - ALI

Source: NASA - Earth Observatory - Image of the Day

[Waspie_Dwarf]

January 20, 2011 - Central India

Satellite: Aqua

Date Acquired: 1/15/2011

Resolutions:

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Bands Used: 1,4,3

Credit:

Jeff Schmaltz

MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC

On a nearly cloudless early winter day, the tans and greens of the high plateaus of Central India can be clearly viewed from space. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite acquired this true-color image on January 12, 2011 as it passed over the region.

But “cloud-free” does not necessarily mean that the skies are clear throughout the region. The Deccan Plateau, primarily dressed in light tan and stippled with a coating of light green vegetation, stands out in bright relief in the center of the country. The surrounding mountain ranges, the near-coastal Western Ghats, the green-flanked Eastern Ghats, and the transverse -running Vinhyas Satpuryas enclosing the northern plateau, are also easily viewed. But to the north and east, skies are not clear.

In northern India, a thick layer of haze hangs along the southern edge of the Himalaya Mountains, nearly obscuring the land below. This is the notorious winter fog of the Indo-Gangetic plain. This fog can disrupt daily life, hindering visibility and bring poor air quality to inhabitants. Although most of the fog occurs in January and February (the winter season), it can occur at other times as well. It grows thick enough to disrupt air travel an average of 15 – 20 days a year.

A thinner, dull gray haze lightly veils the Indus River Valley, lingering over both western India and eastern Pakistan. The haze in this region, like that south of the Himalayas, is primarily fed by urban and industrial pollution and concentrated by the natural features of the land.

Source: MODIS - Image of the Day