Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Total Solar Eclipse of March 29, 2006
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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
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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.
Savannah River Site, South Carolina
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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.
Apataki Atoll
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Published March 6, 2006
This astronaut photograph depicts Apataki Atoll, an atoll in the Tuamotu Islands in the south Pacific. Atolls are ring-like coral islands that nearly or entirely enclose a lagoon. The atoll traces the perimeter of what was once the coastline of a volcanic island. In 1722, Dutch navigator Jakob Roggeveen became the first European to see the Apataki Atoll. It was later visited by Captain Cook in 1774.
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Lake Puma Yumco, Tibet, China
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Published February 27, 2006
The alpine lakes of the Tibetan Plateau are some of the most remote in the world. This mosaic of astronaut photographs, taken along a single International Space Station orbit track, depicts Lake Puma Yumco during the winter season. The lake is located at an elevation of 5,030 meters above sea level (16,503 feet), and is considered ultraoligotrophic, meaning that nutrient concentrations in both the water column and lake sediments are extremely low. Water in such lakes tends to be blue to blue-green and to have high clarity due to low levels of photosynthesizing organisms such as phytoplankton. Color change in these lakes is usually due to shallowing of the water—blue indicating deeper water. A depth transition is visible along the west-southwest shoreline of Lake Puma Yumco at the lower left of image. The most striking feature of the image mosaic, however, is the intricate ice block pattern on the lake surface.
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Sandusky, Ohio
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Published February 20, 2006
Muddy brown water fills Sandusky Bay, just south of Lake Erie in this astronaut photograph. The small city of Sandusky occupies the southeastern shore of the bay. The most striking aspect of this image is the flow of the brown water in and out of the mouth of the bay. Slight movement of lake surface water, driven mainly by wind, causes a small ebb and flow of bay water. Sediment-charged water is derived from agricultural fields along the Sandusky River upstream. Mud plumes in Lake Erie originate from prior pulses of muddy water from the bay. When this image was taken, some clear, lake water (blue-green strip) appeared to be flowing into the bay.
Turin, Italy
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Published February 13, 2006
Located in the Piedmont (Piemonte in Italian) region of northwestern Italy, the city of Turin (Torino) is an important industrial and cultural center, and it hosted the Twentieth Olympic Winter Games. The city is located on the northern banks of the famous Po River. Two of the Po’s major tributaries are visible in this image, Stura di Lanzo and the Malone River.
Confluence of Ohio and Mississippi Rivers at Cairo, IL
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Published February 6, 2006
The Ohio River becomes a tributary of the Mississippi River directly south of Cairo, Illinois, a small city on the spit of land where the rivers converge. Brown, sediment-laden water flowing generally northeast to south from the Ohio River is distinct from the green and relatively sediment-poor water of the Mississippi River (flowing northwest to south). The color of the rivers in this image is reversed from the usual condition of a green Ohio and a brown Mississippi.
Sierra Nevada, Spain
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Published January 30, 2006
The Sierra Nevada, part of the Betic Cordillera of southern Spain, were formed during the Alpine Orogeny, a mountain-building event that also formed the European Alps to the east and the Atlas Mountains of northern Africa across the Mediterranean Sea. Veleta Peak, at an elevation of 3,398 meters (11,148 feet) above sea level, is a popular destination for skiers and snowboarders. This astronaut photograph depicts the Veleta Peak region of the range and illustrates the sharp contrast between the snow-capped mountains, adjacent dry lowlands to the west and north, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south.
Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela
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Published January 23, 2006
Ciudad Guayana lies on the south bank of the Orinoco River, the second largest in South America, at its confluence with the Caroní River (lower left). Islands have developed in the Orinoco in a wide spot opposite the city (upper left). A low barrage (lower left) dams the Caroní as a water supply for the city. The Orinoco River is a muddy brown, carrying sediment produced by erosion of the Andes Mountains far to the southwest. By contrast, the Caroní is clear blue, as it drains the ancient landscapes of the Guyana Highlands, where erosion is much slower. As at the famous confluence of the muddy Amazon and clear Negro rivers in Amazonia, a mixing zone can be seen in the middle of this image. The clear Caroní water produces a less muddy zone for tens of kilometers downstream of the confluence (this part of the Orinoco flows almost due east, left to right).
Forest Fire, Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge, LA
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Published January 16, 2006
Dry conditions and high winds have lead to numerous recent fire outbreaks throughout much of the southwestern and south-central USA. Drought conditions have persisted in the region for months, leading to a build-up of fire fuels, including dried grasses, shrubs, and trees. The combination of high amounts of dry fuel and frequent high winds has stoked small fires into widespread brush fires. This astronaut photograph captures a 25-kilometer long smoke plume from a fire in the Upper Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Louisiana. The fire started at approximately 1:00 p.m. on January 2, 2006, and this image was acquired approximately three and a half hours later as the International Space Station passed over the Texas-Louisiana border, to the southwest of the scene.
Decreasing Water Levels in Egypt’s Toshka Lakes
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Published January 9, 2006
Nearly six years of regional drought and rapidly increasing demand for water have resulted in decreasing water levels in lakes throughout East Africa. The flooded regions of the Toshka Lakes west of Lake Nasser have decreased greatly over the years, exposing the former dune fields, and leaving a “bath-tub ring” of wetlands (dark region) surrounding the lake shorelines.
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