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Collection:
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NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Summer in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Title
Summer in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Title
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Original Caption Released with Image:
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This colorful image of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Beaufort Sea was acquired by the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer's nadir (vertical-viewing) camera on August 16, 2000, during Terra orbit 3532. The swirling patterns apparent on the Beaufort Sea are small ice floes driven by turbulent water patterns, or eddies, caused by the interactions of water masses of differing salinity and temperature. By this time of year, all of the seasonal ice which surrounds the north coast of Alaska in winter has broken up, although the perennial pack ice remains further north. The morphology of the perennial ice pack's edge varies in response to the prevailing wind. If the wind is blowing strongly toward the perennial pack (that is, to the north), the ice edge will be more compact. In this image the ice edge is diffuse, and the patterns reflected by the ice floes indicate fairly calm weather.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (often abbreviated to ANWR) was established by President Eisenhower in 1960, and is the largest wildlife refuge in the United States. Animals of the Refuge include the 130,000-member Porcupine caribou herd, 180 species of birds from four continents, wolves, wolverine, polar and grizzly bears, muskoxen, foxes, and over 40 species of coastal and freshwater fish. Although most of ANWR was designated as wilderness in 1980, the area along the coastal plain was set aside so that the oil and gas reserves beneath the tundra could be studied. Drilling remains a topic of contention, and an energy bill allowing North Slope oil development to extend onto the coastal plain of the Refuge was approved by the US House of Representatives on August 2, 2001.
The Refuge encompasses an impressive variety of arctic and subarctic ecosystems, including coastal lagoons, barrier islands, arctic tundra, and mountainous terrain. Of all these, the arctic tundra is the landscape judged most important for wildlife. From the coast inland to an average of 30-60 kilometers, arctic tundra dominates the coastal plain, until reaching the foothills of the Brooks Mountain Range. Beneath the tundra, a layer of permafrost reaches an average depth of 600 meters, restricting water drainage through the soil, and increasing the sensitivity of tundra vegetation to disturbance. Precipitation is scarce (less than 16 centimeters per year) and the small amount of melt water or rain that soaks into the tundra remains near the surface. This is why the coastal plain can be classified as a wetland.
The western boundary of the Refuge is marked by the Canning River, about halfway between the center and left-hand side of the image, and the eastern boundary is near the right-hand edge at the US/Canadian border. The two permanent human settlements within the image area are Kaktovic near the tip of the large rounded peninsula, and Arctic Village south of the Brooks Range near the southern Refuge boundary. The area represented by the image is approximately 380 kilometers x 540
Original_Caption_Rel eased_with_Image
This colorful image of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Beaufort Sea was acquired by the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer's nadir (vertical-viewing) camera on August 16, 2000, during Terra orbit 3532. The swirling patterns apparent on the Beaufort Sea are small ice floes driven by turbulent water patterns, or eddies, caused by the interactions of water masses of differing salinity and temperature. By this time of year, all of the seasonal ice which surrounds the north coast of Alaska in winter has broken up, although the perennial pack ice remains further north. The morphology of the perennial ice pack's edge varies in response to the prevailing wind. If the wind is blowing strongly toward the perennial pack (that is, to the north), the ice edge will be more compact. In this image the ice edge is diffuse, and the patterns reflected by the ice floes indicate fairly calm weather.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (often abbreviated to ANWR) was established by President Eisenhower in 1960, and is the largest wildlife refuge in the United States. Animals of the Refuge include the 130,000-member Porcupine caribou herd, 180 species of birds from four continents, wolves, wolverine, polar and grizzly bears, muskoxen, foxes, and over 40 species of coastal and freshwater fish. Although most of ANWR was designated as wilderness in 1980, the area along the coastal plain was set aside so that the oil and gas reserves beneath the tundra could be studied. Drilling remains a topic of contention, and an energy bill allowing North Slope oil development to extend onto the coastal plain of the Refuge was approved by the US House of Representatives on August 2, 2001.
The Refuge encompasses an impressive variety of arctic and subarctic ecosystems, including coastal lagoons, barrier islands, arctic tundra, and mountainous terrain. Of all these, the arctic tundra is the landscape judged most important for wildlife. From the coast inland to an average of 30-60 kilometers, arctic tundra dominates the coastal plain, until reaching the foothills of the Brooks Mountain Range. Beneath the tundra, a layer of permafrost reaches an average depth of 600 meters, restricting water drainage through the soil, and increasing the sensitivity of tundra vegetation to disturbance. Precipitation is scarce (less than 16 centimeters per year) and the small amount of melt water or rain that soaks into the tundra remains near the surface. This is why the coastal plain can be classified as a wetland.
The western boundary of the Refuge is marked by the Canning River, about halfway between the center and left-hand side of the image, and the eastern boundary is near the right-hand edge at the US/Canadian border. The two permanent human settlements within the image area are Kaktovic near the tip of the large rounded peninsula, and Arctic Village south of the Brooks Range near the southern Refuge boundary. The area represented by the image is approximately 380 kilometers x 540
Original Caption Released with Image
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Original Caption Released with Image:
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kilometers.
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
kilometers.
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
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Other Information:
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Other_Information
Other Information
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Image Credit:
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NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team
Image_Credit
NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team
Image Credit
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Produced By:
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JPL
Produced_By
JPL
Produced By
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Mission:
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Earth Observing System (EOS)
Mission
Earth Observing System (EOS)
Mission
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Spacecraft:
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Terra
Spacecraft
Terra
Spacecraft
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Target Name:
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Earth
Target_Name
Earth
Target Name
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Is a satellite of:
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Sol (our sun)
Is_a_satellite_of
Sol (our sun)
Is a satellite of
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Instrument:
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Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR)
Instrument
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR)
Instrument
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Product Size:
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1480 samples x 1952 lines
Product_Size
1480 samples x 1952 lines
Product Size
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Primary Data Set:
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Earth Observing System (EOS)
Primary_Data_Set
Earth Observing System (EOS)
Primary Data Set
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facet_what:
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Sun
facet_what
Sun
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Earth
facet_what
Earth
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Polar
facet_what
Polar
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Terra
facet_what
Terra
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Earth Observing System
facet_what
Earth Observing System
facet_what
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facet_what:
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EOS
facet_what
EOS
facet_what
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facet_what:
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MISR
facet_what
MISR
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR)
facet_what
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where
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facet_where:
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California
facet_where
California
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Washington
facet_where
Washington
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Alaska
facet_where
Alaska
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Beaufort Sea
facet_where
Beaufort Sea
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
facet_where
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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United States of America
facet_where
United States of America
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Langley Research Center (LaRC)
facet_where
Langley Research Center (LaRC)
facet_where
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facet_when:
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1980
facet_when
1980
facet_when
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facet_when:
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1960
facet_when
1960
facet_when
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facet_when:
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August 16, 2000
facet_when
August 16, 2000
facet_when
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facet_when:
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August 2, 2001
facet_when
August 2, 2001
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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1980
facet_when_year
1980
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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2001
facet_when_year
2001
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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2000
facet_when_year
2000
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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1960
facet_when_year
1960
facet_when_year
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Image #:
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PIA03419
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UID:
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SPD-PHOTJ-PIA03419
UID
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA03419
UID
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orignial url:
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orignial_url
orignial url
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