The city of Shenyang is China’s sixth largest city with a population ofover 4 million residents in the urban core. The city is the major industrial, commercial, and cultural center of northeastern China (the region historically known as Manchuria). Its geographic location on the flood plains of the Hun and Liao Rivers ensured an early agrarian economy that was later replaced by industrialization and natural resource extraction. The major portion of the local economy is devoted to industries such as metal smelting, coal mining, and petrochemical processing. Several southeast-trending plumes from industrial facilities are visible in the image.
Published Feb 28, 2005
Located approximately 50 kilometers northeast of Tehran, Mt. Damavand is an impressive stratovolcano that reaches 5,670 meters (18,598 feet) in elevation. Part of the Alborz Mountain Range that borders the Caspian Sea to the north, Damavand is a young volcano that has formed mostly during the Holocene Epoch (over approximately the last 10,000 years). The western flank of the volcano includes solidified lava flows with flow levees—“walls” formed as the side edges of flowing lava cooled rapidly, forming a chute that channeled the hotter, interior lava. Two such flows with well-defined levees are highlighted by snow on the mountainside.
Published Feb 21, 2005
The largest river on the planet, the Amazon, forms from the confluence of the Solimões (the upper Amazon River) and the Negro at the Brazilian city of Manaus in central Amazonas. At the river confluence, the muddy, tan-colored waters of the Solimões meet the “black” water of the Negro River. The unique mixing zone where the waters meet extends downstream through the rainforest for hundreds of kilometers, and is a famous attraction for tourists from all over the world. The tourism contributes to substantial growth in the city of Manaus. Twenty years ago the large park near the city center (center) lay on the eastern outskirts of Manaus.
Published Feb 12, 2005
he Issaouane Erg (sand sea) is located in eastern Algeria between the Tinrhert Plateau to the north and the Fadnoun Plateau to the south. Considered to be part of the Sahara Desert, the Issaouane Erg covers an area of approximately 38,000 km2. These complex dunes form the active southwestern border of the sand sea.
Published Feb 7, 2005
The central lake in this astronaut photograph is one of hundreds in the Iberá swamplands that were formed by South America’s second largest river, the Paraná. Although this great river now lies 120 kilometers to the north of this area today, its channel has swung over a great “inland delta” in the recent geological past.
Published Jan 31, 2005
Astronaut photographs illustrate the damage along the southwestern coast of Aceh Province, Indonesia.
Published Jan 24, 2005
The city of Salalah is the capital of the Dhofar region of Oman and is known as the “perfume capital of Arabia.” The city is a popular destination for tourism due to the natural attractions of the al Qar mountains (Jabal al Qar, in Arabic) and abundant stands of frankincense trees lining mountain stream courses. These can be seen in this astronaut photograph as green regions in the Jabal al Qar north of the city (located in the center of the image). The beaches and coastline are also major attractions for scuba diving and bird watching.
Published Jan 17, 2005
The city of Seoul (originally known as Hanyang) has been the capital of Korea for more than 600 years. This astronaut photograph illustrates the Seoul urban area at night. Major roadways and river courses (such as the Han River) are clearly outlined by street lights, while the brightest lights indicate the downtown urban core (center of image) and large industrial complexes. One such complex is located at the far left of the image and occupies an island in the Yellow Sea. Very dark regions in the image are mountains or large bodies of water. Nighttime images have been used extensively in urban climate and urban growth research to map the extent of urban (bright) versus rural (dark) regions.
Published Jan 10, 2005
Howland Island is a United States possession located in the north Pacific between Australia and the Hawaiian Islands. Prior to 1890, organic nitrate (guano) was mined from the island by both the United States and the British. This tiny island (1.6 km²) is currently part of the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge system, and provides nesting areas and forage for a variety of birds and marine wildlife. The island is composed of coral fragments and is surrounded by an active fringing reef. White breakers encircling the island indicate the position of the reef. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station photograph numerous reefs around the world as part of a global mapping and monitoring program.
Published Jan 4, 2005
A plume of black smoke blowing westward is silhouetted against linear dunes in the great sand sea of northeast Libya. Smoke from flares at remote well heads is commonly seen by astronauts flying over the Sahara Desert. The plume dispersal pattern visible at the left edge of the image may be due to upper-level winds or gravitational settling of heavier particulates.
Published Dec 27, 2004
A late fall snowstorm frosted the hills of the Finger Lakes region of central New York in early December, 2004. Shapes of the snow-covered hills are accented by the low Sun angles, and contrast with the darker, finger-shaped lakes filling the region’s valleys. The steep, roughly parallel valleys and hills of the Finger Lakes region were shaped by advancing and retreating ice sheets that were as much as 2 miles deep during the last ice age (2 million years to about 10,000 years ago). River valleys were scoured into deep troughs; many are now filled with lakes. The two largest lakes, Seneca and Cayuga, are so deep that the base of their lakebeds are below sea level.
Published Dec 20, 2004
Lake Sambhar, India’s largest salt lake, sits west of the Indian city of Jaipur (Rajasthan, NW India). On the eastern end, the lake is divided by a 5-kilometer long dam made of stone. East of the dam are salt evaporation ponds where salt has been farmed for a thousand years. This image, taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station, shows Lake Sambhar’s eastern saltworks in detail. Today, they are operated by a joint venture between Hindustan Salts and the Government of Rajasthan. East of the dam is a railroad, built by the British before India’s independence, that provides access from Sambhar Lake City to the salt works.
Published Dec 13, 2004
Perito Moreno (or Moreno Glacier) is located in the icefields of southern Patagonia and is the centerpiece of the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. The glacier is also noteworthy as a tourist attraction, due to periodic formation of an ice dam between the main portion of Lago (Lake) Argentino to the northeast and a southern extension of the lake (Brazo Rico).
Published Dec 6, 2004
Lago de Valencia (Lake Valencia) is located in north-central Venezuela and is the largest freshwater lake in the country. The lake was formed approximately 2-3 million years ago due to faulting and subsequent damming of the Valencia River. The lake has been completely dry during several discrete periods of its geologic history. Since 1976 Lake Valencia water levels have risen due to diversion of water from neighboring watersheds—it currently acts as a reservoir for the surrounding urban centers (such as Maracay).
Published Nov 22, 2004
Green circles in the desert frequently indicate tracts of agriculture supported by center-pivot irrigation. The Al Khufrah Oasis in southeastern Libya (near the Egyptian border) is one of Libya’s largest agricultural projects, and is an easy-to-recognize landmark for orbiting astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Because only about 2 percent of Libya’s land receives enough rainfall to be cultivated, this project uses fossil water from a large underground aquifer. The Libyan government also has a plan called the Great Man Made River to pump and transport these groundwater reserves to the coast to support Libya’s growing population and industrial development.
Published Nov 15, 2004
Corrientes, Argentina (sits on the east bank of the Paraná River, South America’s third largest river. Corrientes is located just inside Argentina, across the river from the southwestern tip of Paraguay.
Published Nov 8, 2004
Gebel (or Mount) Edmonstone is a flat-topped mesa located near the Dahkla Oasis south of Cairo, Egypt. The Oasis is a historically important meeting place of several trade routes connecting different regions of Egypt and Sudan. Gebel Edmonstone is a remnant of an eroding scarp that extends for over 200 kilometers (125 miles) east-southeast to west-northwest (visible in the upper left corner of the image). The flat caprock of both the scarp and Mount Edmonstone is chalky limestone underlain by fossil-bearing shale and fine-grained sedimentary rocks.
Published Nov 1, 2004
Early in October 2004 Mt. St. Helens rumbled back to life with earthquakes, minor eruptions of steam and ash, and renewed growth of the summit lava dome. Fortuitous trajectories of the International Space Station provided the ISS crew excellent views of the area.
Published Oct 25, 2004
The high peaks of the Andes form the backbone of South America and the political border between Chile and Argentina. Formed from the subduction of the Nazca Plate under the South American Plate, the south-central Andes also includes several major volcanoes. One of the most active border volcanoes is Volcan Maipo, located just southeast of Santiago, Chile. This image from the International Space Station shows the volcano near the southern hemisphere spring equinox. The lake, just east of Maipo’s peak, is still ice-covered. However, the increasing temperatures of spring are suggested by a muddy-looking streak near the lower left corner. The streak appears to be a landslide or avalanche that flowed westward down a rugged slope, possibly triggered by instability in the snowpack due to snow melt.
Published Oct 18, 2004
Lake Teletskoye, one of Siberia’s prime tourist destinations, is a large lake that is nestled in a narrow valley between the snow-capped Al-tyntu (west, at top) and Korbu (east, at bottom) mountain ridges of the Altai Mountains. The lake is nearly 80 kilometers long by 5 kilometers wide and 325 meters deep; it is one of the deepest lakes in the world. But Lake Teletskoye is more than a large, deep lake. It is located within the 9,000 km² Altaisky Zapovednik nature reserve, which helps protect its unspoiled waters.
Published Oct 11, 2004
Over the stark, scarred surface of the moon, the Earth floats in the void of space, a watery jewel swathed in ribbons of clouds.
Published Oct 4, 2004
Astronauts have obtained thousands of detailed images of the world’s remote deserts, helping scientists better understand local geomorphological features in a regional context. Driven by northwesterly winds, sands from northwest Saudi Arabia have accumulated in the center of the country as great rivers of dunes (cordons) that extend for hundreds of kilometers. About 320 kilometers northwest of Riyadh, the steep, almost cliff-like margin of the Ad Dahna cordon casts a shadow (right center; diagonally across the scene). Two types of dune surface appear: the tracery of numerous linear dunes (center) and a featureless sand sheet (lower left). Dark, older rocks (30-65 million years old—top right) underlie the sand sea and crop out northeast of the cordon. Convergent dry river beds appear top right.
Published Sep 27, 2004
At an average elevation of 3,812 meters (12,507 feet), Lake Titicaca is one of the highest lakes in the world. The lake is positioned between two major ranges of the Andes Mountain chain and has very limited drainage. The limited outflow of the lake allows for the accumulation of nutrients derived primarily from surrounding communities’ agricultural and sewage waste. The increased nutrient levels can lead to plankton blooms. This astronaut photograph, taken from the International Space Station, captures two such blooms along the eastern shoreline of the lake.
Published Sep 20, 2004
This photo of Hurricane Ivan was snapped as the International Space Station passed over the eye of the storm on Saturday, September 11, 2004, about 15 minutes after 23:00 GMT (7 p.m. EDT). At the time, Ivan was wobbling west off its predicted course, its eye just missing Jamaica. The storm was a powerful and dangerous Category 5 storm with sustained winds reaching to 270 kilometers per hour (165 mph) and higher gusts.
Published Sep 13, 2004
Some of the world’s most active volcanoes make up the spine of the Kamchatka Peninsula in far east Russia. Kamchatka is the northwestern edge of the Pacific “ring of fire,” where earthquakes and volcanism are caused by ongoing subduction of the Pacific oceanic plate beneath the Eurasian plate. This astronaut photograph profiles the summit area of Ksudach Volcano, also called Voniuchi Khrebet Volcano, in southern Kamchatka. White snow on the ridges in this image contrasts with the dark volcanic soils and highlights the well-developed radial drainage pattern down the slopes of the volcano.
Published Sep 13, 2004
Venezuela’s Lake Maracaibo presents a complicated surface to interpret. Oil platforms and other infrastructure supporting the oil industry generate oil slicks, heavy ship traffic produces linear ship wakes, and vivid green streaks and swirls are patches of duck weed growth that has thrived on the lake.
Published Sep 6, 2004
This photo of Hurricane Frances was taken by Astronaut Mike Fincke aboard the International Space Station as he flew 230 statute miles above the storm at about 9 a.m. CDT Friday, Aug. 27, 2004.
Published Aug 30, 2004
Astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle and Space Station have tracked regional environmental changes spanning decades. Lake Chapala, Mexico’s largest lake, serves as one example of an area experiencing significant changes that have been well documented from space. Over the past twenty years, the lake’s water levels have decreased in conjunction with increasing development from the fast-growing city of Guadalajara.
Published Aug 30, 2004
The Yellow River Delta coastline along the Gulf of Bohai has always experienced dramatic changes, and those changes continue today. This mosaic of images taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station shows several things. First, the image shows today’s configuration of the delta of China’s Yellow River, which is one of the most dynamic coastlines on Earth. Second, the scene allows mapping of land use along the coastal plain, including the boundaries of the Shengli Oil Field, China’s second largest oil field. But perhaps the most interesting aspect of this image is the large patch of green water off the northern coast of the delta—a presumed plankton bloom.
Published Aug 23, 2004
