Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Viewing Earth’s Limb
Published April 2, 2003
Some of the most breathtaking views of Earth taken from space are those that capture our planet’s limb.
Related images:
3070 x 2044 243 KB - JPEG
3060 x 2092 718 KB - JPEG
Lake Michigan Ice
Published March 30, 2003
In 2003 a colder than normal North American winter saw the entire surface areas of Lakes Superior, Huron, and Erie frozen over for the first time in years. Although the open surface waters of Lake Michigan did not freeze this season, the southern portion experienced a higher than normal amount of ice. Winds and currents drove broken pieces of ice from the north to the south. This image taken from the International Space Station shows a number of large pieces of ice collected along and just off the shoreline southwest of Benton Harbor, Michigan. Smaller pieces trail northward offshore from Chicago, Illinois. Note the ice accumulation along the entire eastern shoreline of Lake Michigan as well as the wind-drive lake-effect snow cover over the western half of the lower Michigan Peninsula.
1000 x 1518 712 KB - JPEG
Page, Arizona
Published March 23, 2003
This isolated community near the northern Arizona border is of special interest because of its origin and location. Unlike other towns in the area, Page was created in 1957 to house workers and their families during the construction of nearby Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. Its 17-square-mile site was obtained in a land exchange with the Navajo Indian tribe. The town is perched atop Manson Mesa at an elevation of 4,300 feet above sea level and 600 feet above Lake Powell.
3032 x 2007 4 MB - JPEG
Buenos Aires at Night
Published March 16, 2003
Buenos Aires is one of the larger cities seen by orbiting crews. Twelve million people, almost one third of all Argentines, live in this city, often called the “Paris of the South”.
1000 x 736 571 KB - JPG
Southern Sierra Nevada and Owens Lake
Published March 9, 2003
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station looked obliquely down at the steep eastern flank of California’s Sierra Nevada. Even from space the topography is impressive. The range drops nearly 11,000 feet from Mt. Whitney (under cloud, arrow), the highest mountain in the lower 48 states (14,494 ft), to the floor of Owens Valley (the elevation of the town of Lone Pine is 3,760 ft). The Sierra Nevada landscape is well known for deep, glacially scoured valleys, like Kern Canyon west of Mt. Whitney.
1000 x 685 872 KB - JPEG
Australian Bushfires
Published February 9, 2003
The crew of the International Space Station took this dramatic image of the fires on the morning of January 18, 2003. Brisk winds are sweeping smoke plumes eastward off the Australian coast north of Cape Howe.
540 x 358 JPEG
1000 x 681 714 KB - JPEG
Mashhad, Iran
Published February 1, 2003
With a population of just over two million, Mashhad is Iran’s second-largest city. It is located in the Kashaf River valley near the northeast corner of the country, not far away from the borders of Turkmenistan and Afganistan. Besides being the capital and center of commerce for Khorasan province, Mashhad is tourist center as well as a site of pilgrimage for millions to the shrine of martyred Shi’ate Imam Reza. The crew of STS-107 acquired this snow-enhanced image just after noon (local time) on January 21, 2003. Note how little snow is visible in the urbanized areas and the discoloration of snow in the surrounding area, probably due to wind-borne smoke generated by fuel burning in the city.
3032 x 2064 2 MB - JPEG
Crater Lake, Oregon
Published January 26, 2003
Crater Lake, a volcanic caldera in South Central Oregon’s Cascade Mountains, boasts breathtaking scenery, created about 7,700 years ago with the volcanic eruption and subsequent collapse of the summit of Mt. Mazama.
1000 x 695 861 KB - JPEG
Classroom in Space
Published January 25, 2003
The above photo of the International Space Station was taken by an astronaut aboard the space shuttle on April 17, 2002. Although its construction is not yet complete, Space Station Alpha began operations in November 2000. It now serves as home to three astronauts as well as dozens of already ongoing science experiments.
540 x 563 JPEG
4126 x 4302 2 MB - JPG
Baltimore with a Dusting of Snow
Published January 19, 2003
While traveling to the International Space Station aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor, astronauts photographed the northeastern United States blanketed in fresh snow. This image, taken in early December 2002, shows the city of Baltimore and the surrounding area. An inset shows the center of the city (rotated so north points up).
1000 x 1143 2 MB - JPEG
Kharg Island, Iran
Published January 12, 2003
Kharg Island is Iran’s primary oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf. This rocky limestone island is unique because it is one of the few islands in the Persian Gulf with freshwater which has collected within the porous limestone. In addition to its commercial and strategic importance, the freshwater has biological importance, supporting populations of gazelles. This high-resolution photograph taken by astronauts on board the International Space Station shows detail of the tanker dock facilities, tanks and other infrastructure. Sunglint on the surface of the water highlights small amounts of oil on the sea surface and reveals the direction of the local currents.
2000 x 3032 4 MB - JPEG
Old Havana, Cuba
Published January 5, 2003
he red tile roofs and historic buildings of Cuba’s Old Havana appear distinctly in this high-resolution photograph taken by astronauts on board the International Space Station.