Iceberg A22A, South Atlantic Ocean

The iceberg A22A was photographed when it was about a third of the distance from South America towards Cape Town, South Africa. A22A is one of the largest icebergs to drift as far north as 50 degrees south latitude, bringing it beneath the daylight path of the International Space Station (ISS). A series of parallel lines can be seen in the lower image. These are probably “hummocks,” dunes of snow that have solidified, and they date back to the time when the iceberg was connected to Antarctica. A developing fracture in the ice can be seen in the lower, detailed view.

---

The featured astronaut photographs ISS015-E-10125 (upper image) and ISS015-E-10118 (lower image) were acquired May 30, 2007, with a Kodak 760C digital camera using 180mm and 800mm lenses respectively, and are provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The images have been enhanced to improve contrast. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth.

Published June 18, 2007
Data acquired May 30, 2007

Source:

ISS > Digital Camera

Collection:

Astronaut Photography