Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Data acquired February 1, 2003 JPEG
Data acquired February 1, 2003 540 x 540 JPEG
In one frame International Space Station astronauts were able to capture the evolution of fringing reefs to atolls. As with the Hawaiian Islands, these volcanic hot spot islands become progressively older to the northwest. As these islands move away from their magma sources they erode and subside.
Astronaut Photograph ISS6-E-22132 was taken with a 760 digital camera and is provided by the Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory at Johnson Space Center. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA-JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth.
Published February 16, 2003 Data acquired February 1, 2003