Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection
Title:
Gulf Coast, Shaded Relief and Colored Height
Original Caption Released with Image:
The topography of the Gulf Coast states is well shown in this color-coded shaded relief map generated with data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. The image on the top (see Figure 1) is a standard view showing southern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the panhandle of Florida. Green colors indicate low elevations, rising through yellow and tan, to white at the highest elevations.

For the view on the bottom (see Figure 2), elevations below 10 meters (33 feet) above sea level have been colored light blue. These low coastal elevations are especially vulnerable to flooding associated with storm surges. Planners can use data like these to predict which areas are in the most danger and help develop mitigation plans in the event of particular flood events.

Elevation data used in this image were acquired by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, launched on Feb. 11, 2000. SRTM used the same radar instrument that comprised the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) that flew twice on the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1994. SRTM was designed to collect 3-D measurements of the Earth's surface. To collect the 3-D data, engineers added a 60-meter (approximately 200-foot) mast, installed additional C-band and X-band antennas, and improved tracking and navigation devices. The mission is a cooperative project between NASA, the National Geospatial-Intellige nce Agency (NGA) of the U.S. Department of Defense and the German and Italian space agencies. It is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C.

Location: 31 degrees north latitude, 88 degrees west longitude
Orientation: North toward the top, Mercator projection
Size: 702 by 433 kilometers (435 by 268 miles)
Image Data: shaded and colored SRTM elevation model
Date Acquired: February 2000
Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/NGA
Produced By:
JPL
Mission:
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)
Spacecraft:
Space Shuttle Endeavour
Target Name:
Earth
Is a satellite of:
Sol (our sun)
Instrument:
X-Band Radar
Instrument:
C-Band Radar
Product Size:
9100 samples x 11220 lines
facet_what:
Sun
facet_what:
Earth
facet_what:
C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar
facet_what:
Spaceborne Imaging Radar
facet_what:
Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar
facet_what:
Space Shuttle Endeavour
facet_what:
Shuttle Radar Topography Mission
facet_what:
SRTM
facet_what:
C-Band Radar
facet_what:
X-Band Radar
facet_what:
Space Shuttle Orbiter
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
facet_where:
Washington
facet_where:
Florida
facet_where:
Alabama
facet_where:
Mississippi
facet_where:
Louisiana
facet_where:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where:
Washington, D.C.
facet_when:
1994
facet_when:
February 2000
facet_when_year:
1994
facet_when_year:
2000
Image #:
PIA06667
UID:
SPD-PHOTJ-PIA06667
orignial url:

Gulf Coast, Shaded Relief and Colored Height