Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Data acquired August 26, 2005 800 x 600 198 KB - JPEG
Data acquired August 26, 2005 1600 x 1200 505 KB - JPEG
Sitting just over 2,000 kilometers north of Antarctica in the South Atlantic Ocean, South Georgia Island resembled that frozen continent when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this image on August 26, 2005, at the height of austral winter. While the snow hides any distinctive land features, the island’s steep mountain topography is evident from the uneven shadows the peaks cast on the snow. Two mountain ranges form the spine of the island, and many peaks rise above 2,000 meters in elevation. The highest point on South Georgia Island is Mount Paget at 2,935 meters.
South Georgia Island is not permanently inhabited, though it hosted a whaling station early in the twentieth century. The glacier-covered island is an oasis for wildlife, including king penguins, albatrosses, elephant seals, and southern fur seals.
Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC
Published August 30, 2005 Data acquired August 26, 2005