Ice on the Great Lakes - related image preview

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Ice on the Great Lakes

It is not unusual for the surface of Lake Erie to be covered by ice this time of year. This true-color image was taken on February 8, 2004, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra satellite. The scene shows ice covering most of Lake Erie, with the exception of a long narrow swath of surface water visible along its northern coastline. The opening in the ice reveals light blue and turquoise patterns in the water, probably the result of sediments. Ice has also formed along most of the western coastline of Lake Huron, to the north. The false-color image, produced using a different MODIS band combination, can help in distinguishing snow and ice from clouds. The clouds are light blue and white. Snow and ice are light and dark blue. Thus far, the Great Lakes do not have as much ice cover this winter as compared to last winter.


Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published February 9, 2004
Data acquired February 8 - 8, 2004

Source:
Aqua > MODIS
Collections:
MODIS Rapid Response
Visible Earth