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Oshigambo River and Etosha Pan, Namibia
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Published May 1, 2006
Etosha Pan in northern Namibia is a large, dry lakebed in the Kalahari Desert. The 120-kilometer-long (75-mile-long) lake and its surroundings are protected as one of Namibia’s largest wildlife parks. About 16,000 years ago, when ice sheets were melting across Northern Hemisphere land masses, a wet climate phase in southern Africa filled Etosha Lake. Today, Etosha Pan is seldom seen with even a thin sheet of water covering the salt pan. This astronaut photograph shows the point where the Oshigambo River runs into the salt lake during an unusually wet summer in southern Africa, in March 2006.
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Lake Poopo Water Levels
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Published April 24, 2006
Lake Poopó sits high in the Bolivian Andes, catching runoff from its larger neighbor to the north—Lake Titicaca (not shown)—by way of the Desaguadero River, which is the muddy area at the north end of the lake. Because Lake Poopó is very high in elevation (roughly 3,400 meters, or 11,000 feet above sea level), very shallow (generally less than 3 meters, or 9 feet), and the regional climate is very dry, small changes in precipitation in the surrounding basin have large impacts on the water levels and area of Lake Poopó. When the lake fills during wet periods, it drains from the south end into the Salar de Coipasa salt flat (not shown). Water levels in Lake Poopó are important because the lake is one of South America’s largest salt-water lakes, making it a prime stop for migratory birds, including flamingoes.
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Salt Dome in the Zagros Mountains, Iran
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Published April 17, 2006
The Zagros Mountains in southwestern Iran present an impressive landscape of long linear ridges and valleys. Formed by collision of the Eurasian and Arabian tectonic plates, the ridges and valleys extend hundreds of kilometers. Stresses induced in the Earth’s crust by the collision caused extensive folding of the preexisting layered sedimentary rocks. Subsequent erosion removed softer rocks, such as mudstone and siltstone while leaving harder rocks, such as limestone and dolomite. This differential erosion formed the linear ridges of the Zagros Mountains. This astronaut photograph of the southwestern edge of the Zagros mountain belt includes another common feature of the region—a salt dome (Kuh-e-Namak or “mountain of salt” in Farsi).
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Lake Natron, Tanzania
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Published April 10, 2006
If Lake Natron, in Africa’s Great Rift Valley, had a color theme, it would be pink. The alkali salt crust on the surface of the lake is often colored red or pink by the salt-loving microorganisms that live there. Also, the lake is the only breeding area for the 2.5 million Lesser Flamingoes that live in the valley. These flamingoes flock along saline lakes in the region, where they feed on Spirulina, a blue-green algae with red pigments. This mosaic of photographs of the southern portion of Lake Natron shows the largest open lagoon area, and island mud flat, and a large area of pink salt crust. The colors show the actual colors viewed by the astronauts. Each time the lake is photographed, there are differences in the pattern of its salt crust, and the red colors of the blue-green algae and bacteria on the surface of the crust.
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Newport, Rhode Island
Published April 3, 2006
Newport, Rhode Island, is well known as a summer destination, but winter snow blankets the city of Newport in this astronaut photograph. One of the first European settlements in the Americas, the region was initially populated by colonists seeking religious freedom denied them in Europe. Founded in 1639, Newport became a bastion of the Baptist faith but also exemplified one of the basic precepts of the United States Constitution—separation of church and state. Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, Newport consolidated its position as one of the premier ports of the United States. The 19(sup>th and early 20(sup>th centuries saw a decline in commercial shipping at Newport and its rebirth as a recreational destination. Many of the leading industrialist families of the time, such as the Vanderbilts, built grand summer mansions that are now open to visitors.
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Total Solar Eclipse of March 29, 2006
Published March 31, 2006
The International Space Station (ISS) was in position to view the umbral shadow cast by the Moon as it moved between the Sun and the Earth during the solar eclipse on March 29, 2006. This astronaut image captures the shadow across southern Turkey, northern Cyprus, and the Mediterranean Sea. People living in these regions observed a total solar eclipse, in which the Moon completely covers the Sun’s disk. The astronaut photograph was taken at approximately 2:00 p.m. local time. The terminator of the eclipse—the line between the light and dark parts of the Sun’s disk— is visible as it passes across central Turkey. The portion of the ISS visible at image top is the Space Station Remote Manipulator System.
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Winter in the Dasht-e-Lut Desert, Eastern Iran
Published March 27, 2006
An International Space Station crew member took this striking photograph one evening in late February, 2006. The image takes advantage of the Sun’s low angle to reveal linear geological structures of the Iranian mountain range bordering the western edge of the basin known as Dasht-e-Lut. The range rises 1,818 meters (6,000 feet) above sea level and lies 750 kilometers (466 miles) north of the Persian Gulf. The convoluted appearance results from erosion of folded and faulted rocks—softer rocks erode away quickly, leaving more resistant rock to form linear ridges that are perpendicular to the direction of compression.
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Savannah River Site, South Carolina
Published March 20, 2006
Situated between the South Carolina piedmont and the Atlantic Ocean, the Savannah River Site is an important part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s nuclear program. The southern half of the site (building clusters with reflective white rooftops) is shown in this astronaut photograph. Construction of the site—originally called the Savannah River Plant—began in 1951 for the purpose of generating radioactive materials necessary for nuclear weapons production during the Cold War. A total of five nuclear reactors occupy the central portion of the site and operated throughout 1953–1992. Following the end of the Cold War in 1991, activities at the Savannah River Site are now focused on disposal of nuclear wastes, environmental cleanup of the site itself, and development of advanced remediation technologies.
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Belle Isle, Canada
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Published March 13, 2006
Belle Isle (center) is surrounded by sea ice in this winter viewtaken from the International Space Station. Belle Isle lies in the BelleIsle Strait between the island of Newfoundland and the Labrador mainland. A portion of a small island along the coast of Labrador appears in the top left corner. Ice patterns show that the island lies at the meeting point of two sea currents (larger arrows). The Labrador Current flows from the northwest (top left), and a smaller current, driven by dominant westerly winds, flows from the southwest (lower left). Flow lines in sea ice give a sense of the movement of the ice.
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