Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection Collection NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection Collection
Title:
Fingerprints in the Dust Title Fingerprints in the Dust Title
Original Caption Released with Image:
These MISR nadir-camera images of eastern China compare a somewhat hazy summer view from July 9, 2000 (left) with a spectacularly dusty spring view from April 7, 2001 (middle). The left-hand and middle images are from Terra orbits 2967 and 6928, respectively, and extend from central Manchuria near the top to portions of North and South Korea at the bottom. They are approximately 380 kilometers in width. Asia's desert areas are prone to soil erosion, as underground water tables are lowered by prolonged drought and by industrial and agricultural water use. Heavy winds blowing eastward across the arid and sparsely vegetated surfaces of Mongolia and western China pick up large quantities of yellow dust. Airborne dust clouds from the April 2001 storm blew across the Pacific Ocean and were carried as far as North America. The minerals transported in this manner are believed to provide nutrients for both oceanic and land ecosystems. According to the Xinhua News Agency in China, nearly one million tons of Gobi Desert dust blow into Beijing each year. During a similar dust outbreak last year, the Associated Press reported that the visibility in Beijing had been reduced the point where buildings were barely visible across city streets, and airline schedules were significantly disrupted. The dust has also been implicated in adverse health effects such as respiratory discomfort and eye irritation. The image on the right is a higher resolution MISR nadir-camera view of a portion of the April 7, 2001 dust cloud. It covers an area roughly 250 kilometers wide by 470 kilometers high. When viewed at full magnification, a number of atmospheric wave features, like the ridges and valleys of a fingerprint, are apparent. These are probably induced by surface topography, which can disturb the wind flow. A few small cumulus clouds are also visible, and are casting shadows on the thick lower dust layer. Analyses of images such as these constitute one phase of MISR's participation in the Asian-Pacific Regional Aerosol Characterization Experiment, an international campaign aimed at studying the offshore transport of airborne particles from the Asian continent. For more about this international endeavor, see http://saga.pmel.no… MISR was built and is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, for NASA's Office of Earth Science, Washington, DC. The Terra satellite is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology. Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image These MISR nadir-camera images of eastern China compare a somewhat hazy summer view from July 9, 2000 (left) with a spectacularly dusty spring view from April 7, 2001 (middle). The left-hand and middle images are from Terra orbits 2967 and 6928, respectively, and extend from central Manchuria near the top to portions of North and South Korea at the bottom. They are approximately 380 kilometers in width. Asia's desert areas are prone to soil erosion, as underground water tables are lowered by prolonged drought and by industrial and agricultural water use. Heavy winds blowing eastward across the arid and sparsely vegetated surfaces of Mongolia and western China pick up large quantities of yellow dust. Airborne dust clouds from the April 2001 storm blew across the Pacific Ocean and were carried as far as North America. The minerals transported in this manner are believed to provide nutrients for both oceanic and land ecosystems. According to the Xinhua News Agency in China, nearly one million tons of Gobi Desert dust blow into Beijing each year. During a similar dust outbreak last year, the Associated Press reported that the visibility in Beijing had been reduced the point where buildings were barely visible across city streets, and airline schedules were significantly disrupted. The dust has also been implicated in adverse health effects such as respiratory discomfort and eye irritation. The image on the right is a higher resolution MISR nadir-camera view of a portion of the April 7, 2001 dust cloud. It covers an area roughly 250 kilometers wide by 470 kilometers high. When viewed at full magnification, a number of atmospheric wave features, like the ridges and valleys of a fingerprint, are apparent. These are probably induced by surface topography, which can disturb the wind flow. A few small cumulus clouds are also visible, and are casting shadows on the thick lower dust layer. Analyses of images such as these constitute one phase of MISR's participation in the Asian-Pacific Regional Aerosol Characterization Experiment, an international campaign aimed at studying the offshore transport of airborne particles from the Asian continent. For more about this international endeavor, see http://saga.pmel.no… MISR was built and is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, for NASA's Office of Earth Science, Washington, DC. The Terra satellite is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology. Original Caption Released with Image
Other Information:
MISR Site Other_Information MISR Site Other Information
Image Credit:
NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team Image_Credit NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team Image Credit
Produced By:
JPL Produced_By JPL Produced By
Mission:
Earth Observing System (EOS) Mission Earth Observing System (EOS) Mission
Spacecraft:
Terra Spacecraft Terra Spacecraft
Target Name:
Earth Target_Name Earth Target Name
Is a satellite of:
Sol (our sun) Is_a_satellite_of Sol (our sun) Is a satellite of
Instrument:
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) Instrument Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) Instrument
Product Size:
1845 samples x 1701 lines Product_Size 1845 samples x 1701 lines Product Size
Primary Data Set:
Earth Observing System (EOS) Primary_Data_Set Earth Observing System (EOS) Primary Data Set
facet_what:
Sun facet_what Sun facet_what
facet_what:
Earth facet_what Earth facet_what
facet_what:
Terra facet_what Terra facet_what
facet_what:
Earth Observing System facet_what Earth Observing System facet_what
facet_what:
EOS facet_what EOS facet_what
facet_what:
MISR facet_what MISR facet_what
facet_what:
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) facet_what Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) facet_what
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory facet_where Jet Propulsion Laboratory facet_where
facet_where:
Pacific Ocean facet_where Pacific Ocean facet_where
facet_where:
California facet_where California facet_where
facet_where:
Washington facet_where Washington facet_where
facet_where:
Korea facet_where Korea facet_where
facet_where:
China facet_where China facet_where
facet_where:
Beijing facet_where Beijing facet_where
facet_where:
Mongolia facet_where Mongolia facet_where
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) facet_where Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) facet_where
facet_where:
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) facet_where Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) facet_where
facet_where:
Langley Research Center (LaRC) facet_where Langley Research Center (LaRC) facet_where
facet_when:
April 2001 facet_when April 2001 facet_when
facet_when:
July 9, 2000 facet_when July 9, 2000 facet_when
facet_when:
April 7, 2001 facet_when April 7, 2001 facet_when
facet_when_year:
2001 facet_when_year 2001 facet_when_year
facet_when_year:
2000 facet_when_year 2000 facet_when_year
Image #:
PIA03405 Image_# PIA03405 Image #
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA03405 UID SPD-PHOTJ-PIA03405 UID
orignial url:
http://photojournal… orignial_url http://photojournal… orignial url

Fingerprints in the Dust

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Fingerprints in the Dust