A catalog of NASA images and animations of our home planet

• Credit:

  Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

The northward progression of the spring thaw into Baffin Bay is apparent in this MODIS image from May 16, 2001. Clear water and a stream of melting sea ice can be seen opening up between Greenland (upper right) and Canada's Ellesmere Islands. Native peoples and other early adventures explored these dangerous, ice-filled waters, and their explorations led to the discovery of the Northwest Passage, a navigable waterway from the Atlantic Ocean to the Orient that passed through the Arctic Ocean.

Images & Animations

• Webmaster: Paul Przyborski
• NASA Official: Steven E. Platnick
• Database Updated: May 20, 2013