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Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
| Title |
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis |
| Description |
On December 26, 2004, a large (magnitude 9.0) earthquake occurred off the western coast of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean. The earthquake was caused by the release of stresses accumulated as the Burma tectonic plate overrides the India tectonic plate. Movement of the seafloor due to the earthquake generated a tsunami, or seismic sea wave, that affected coastal regions around the Indian Ocean. The northwestern Sumatra coastline in particular suffered extensive damage and loss of life. These astronaut photographs illustrate damage along the southwestern coast of Aceh Province in the vicinity of the city of Lho? Kruet, Indonesia. Large areas of bare and disturbed soil (brownish gray) that were previously covered with vegetation are visible along the coastline in the near-nadir (top) image. Embayments in the coastline were particularly hard hit, while adjacent headlands were less affected. The oblique (lower) astronaut photograph was acquired 45 seconds after the near-nadir photograph, and captures sunglint illuminating the Indian Ocean and standing water inland (light gray, yellow). Distortion and scale differences in the images are caused by increased obliquity of the view from the International Space Station. Arrows on the photographs indicate several points of comparison between the two images. Standing bodies of seawater may inhibit revegetation of damaged areas and act as sources of salt contamination in soil and groundwater. Astronaut photographs ISS010-E-13079 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS010&roll=E&frame=13079 ] (top) and ISS010-E-13088 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS010&roll=E&frame=13088 ] (bottom) were acquired January 15, 2005 with a Kodak 760C digital camera using a 400 mm lens, and are provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and the Image Science & Analysis Group, Johnson Space Center. The International Space Station Program [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/index.html ] supports the laboratory to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ ] |
|
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis
| Title |
Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis |
| Description |
On December 26, 2004, a large (magnitude 9.0) earthquake occurred off the western coast of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean. The earthquake was caused by the release of stresses accumulated as the Burma tectonic plate overrides the India tectonic plate. Movement of the seafloor due to the earthquake generated a tsunami, or seismic sea wave, that affected coastal regions around the Indian Ocean. The northwestern Sumatra coastline in particular suffered extensive damage and loss of life. These astronaut photographs illustrate damage along the southwestern coast of Aceh Province in the vicinity of the city of Lho? Kruet, Indonesia. Large areas of bare and disturbed soil (brownish gray) that were previously covered with vegetation are visible along the coastline in the near-nadir (top) image. Embayments in the coastline were particularly hard hit, while adjacent headlands were less affected. The oblique (lower) astronaut photograph was acquired 45 seconds after the near-nadir photograph, and captures sunglint illuminating the Indian Ocean and standing water inland (light gray, yellow). Distortion and scale differences in the images are caused by increased obliquity of the view from the International Space Station. Arrows on the photographs indicate several points of comparison between the two images. Standing bodies of seawater may inhibit revegetation of damaged areas and act as sources of salt contamination in soil and groundwater. Astronaut photographs ISS010-E-13079 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS010&roll=E&frame=13079 ] (top) and ISS010-E-13088 [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS010&roll=E&frame=13088 ] (bottom) were acquired January 15, 2005 with a Kodak 760C digital camera using a 400 mm lens, and are provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and the Image Science & Analysis Group, Johnson Space Center. The International Space Station Program [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/index.html ] supports the laboratory to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. [ http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ ] |
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Thunderstorms over Brazil
| Title |
Thunderstorms over Brazil |
| Description |
This photograph, acquired in February 1984 by an astronaut aboard the space shuttle, shows a series of mature thunderstorms located near the Parana River in southern Brazil. With abundant warm temperatures and moisture-laden air in this part of Brazil, large thunderstorms are commonplace. A number of overshooting tops and anvil clouds are visible at the tops of the clouds. Storms of this magnitude can drop large amounts of rainfall in a short period of time, causing flash floods. However, a NASA-funded researcher has discovered that tiny airborne particles of pollution may modify developing thunderclouds by increasing the quantity and reducing the size of the ice crystals within them. These modifications may affect the clouds? impact on the Earth?s ?radiation budget,? or the amount of radiation that enters and leaves our planet. Steven Sherwood, a professor at Yale University, found that airborne aerosols reduce the size of ice crystals in thunderclouds and may reduce precipitation as well. Using several satellites and instruments including NASA?s Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) and NASA?s Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite, Sherwood observed how airborne pollution particles (aerosols) affect large thunderstorms, or cumulonimbus clouds in the tropics. Common aerosols include mineral dust, smoke, and sulfates. An increased number of these particles create a larger number of smaller ice crystals in cumulonimbus clouds. As a result of their smaller size, the ice crystals evaporate from a solid state directly into a gas, instead of falling as rain. Sherwood noted that this effect is more prevalent over land than open ocean areas. Previous research by Daniel Rosenfeld of Hebrew University revealed that aerosols and pollution reduced rainfall in shallow cumulus clouds of liquid water, which do not have the capability to produce as much rainfall. Sherwood expanded on that research by looking at cumulonimbus clouds with more ice particles. Studies have also proven that ice particles are smaller in the upper reaches of thunderclouds when there is more pollution and when the rising air in the clouds (convection) is stronger. Aerosols seem to have the most influence on seasonal and longer timescales such as during the warmer months when plants and undergrowth are burned to clear fields. Over areas where biomass burning occurs, such as South America, aerosols have been found to reduce the diameter of ice crystals in the clouds by as much as 20 percent. Areas over deserts, such as Africa's Sahel Region where dust is a primary aerosol, there was a 10 percent decrease in the diameter of ice crystals in cumulonimbus clouds. Aerosol particles are necessary for clouds to form, and it has been suspected that clouds might be altered by large concentrations of them. By looking at ten years of aerosol data and statistically analyzing many thunderclouds, Sherwood was able to confirm that they were affected. Sherwood found that ice, crystals are smaller in clouds over continents than oceans, which could be attributed to the amount of pollution generated over land. The highest values occur widely over Northern Africa, where desert dust and smoke from agricultural burning occur. Intermediate values prevail over much of Asia, through the Indonesia region and into the south Pacific. The largest ice crystal sizes were found over the eastern Pacific and southern Indian Oceans. Sherwood?s article, ?Aerosols and Ice Particle Size in Tropical Cumulonimbus,? appears in the May 1, 2002, issue of the American Meteorological Society "Journal of Climate". This work was performed under the NASA Earth Observing System/Interdisciplinary Science (IDS) program under the Earth Science Enterprise (ESE). Image STS41B-41-2347 [ http://earth.jsc.nasa.gov/photoinfo.cgi?PHOTO=STS41B-41-2347 ] was provided by the Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ ] at Johnson Space Center. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA-JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/sseop/ ] |
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Southern tip of Sumatra, Ind
…
PIA00953
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Southern tip of Sumatra, Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke over southern Sumatra from a camera aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis Saturday, September 27. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E). [MET 00215343 - 00215750]. Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The fire has now been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. This KidSat image (MET 00215624) of the southern tip of Sumatra was captured on September 27, 1997 during Space Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 3.0 degrees S, 102.9 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 205 km long. A clear view is visible of the southern tip of Sumatra with the volcanoes that make up the backbone of the island appearing darker than the surrounding land. Travelling northwest, the first smoke plumes are visible in the rain forests east of the mountains where land is being cleared for palm plantations. The prevailing winds are from the southeast and are blowing most of the smoke to the northwest of this image (see images 00215637/PIA00954 and 00215701/PIA00955). The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage, scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
|
Southern Sumatra, Indonesia
PIA00954
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Southern Sumatra, Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke over southern Sumatra from a camera aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis September 27. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E). [MET 00215343 - 00215750]. Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The fire has now been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. This KidSat image (MET 00215637) of the southern region of Sumatra was captured on September 27, 1997 during the Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 3.7 degrees S 103.4 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 205 km long. The smoke plumes appear in the rain forests east of the mountains where land is being cleared for palm plantations, the plumes indicate a prevailing wind to the northwest and rise above the continuous layer of smoke. Within a short distance, the region becomes completely blanketed in smoke with only the peaks of the volcanoes rising above the gray haze layer. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be, accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
|
Sumatra, Indonesia
PIA00955
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Sumatra, Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke over southern Sumatra from a camera aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on September 27. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E) [MET 00215343 - 00215750]. Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The fire has now been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. This KidSat image (MET 00215701) of Sumatra was captured on September 27, 1997 during the Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 4.9 degrees S 104.3 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 205 km long. The smoke plumes appear in the rain forests east of the mountains where land is being cleared for palm plantations, the plumes indicate a prevailing wind to the northwest and rise above the continuous layer of smoke. For a geographic reference, see image #00215701_img_map. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet, Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
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Kidsat image of Sumatra, Ind
…
PIA00956
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Kidsat image of Sumatra, Indonesia & map |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke over southern Sumatra from a camera aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis last Friday, September 26. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E) [MET 00215343 - 00215750]. Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The fire has now been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. This KidSat image (MET 00215701) of Sumatra was captured on September 27, 1997 during the Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 4.9 degrees S 104.3 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 205 km long. The smoke plumes appear in the rain forests east of the mountains where land is being cleared for palm plantations, the plumes indicate a prevailing wind to the northwest and rise above the continuous layer of smoke. The image is shown on a map of the region for geographic reference. Smoke from the fires completely covers the land. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL:, http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
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Smoke over Lake Toba, Indone
…
PIA00951
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Smoke over Lake Toba, Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
As the Space Shuttle Atlantis flew over the Indonesian archipelago on Saturday, September 27, middle school students across the country used the Kidsat camera to photograph the fires and smoke that blanket the island of Sumatra . A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E). [Mission Elapsed Time (MET) 00215343 - 00215750] Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The effects of the fires have been astronomical. So far the fire has been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. This KidSat image (MET 00215424) of the northern regions of Sumatra was captured on September 27, 1997 during the Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 3.1 degrees S 98.6 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 205 km long. Smoke from the fires completely covers the land. The only indication of surface features is from the clouds that rise above the smoke over Danau Toba, the largest lake in Sumatra. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. Commands are sent from middle schools through a Mission Operations Gateway at the University of California, San Diego, to a Thinkpad on the Shuttle flight deck. Images are transmitted back to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory where they are immediately placed on the Internet for the KidSat students and the rest of the world to view and use. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and, operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
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Map of northern Sumatra, Ind
…
PIA00952
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Map of northern Sumatra, Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
This map corresponds to KidSat image MET 00215424 of the northern regions of Sumatra that was captured on September 27, 1997 during the Shuttle flight STS-86. It is centered at 3.1 degrees S 98.6 degrees E. As the Space Shuttle Atlantis flew over the Indonesian archipelago last Friday, middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke that blanket Sumatra. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra (7.44S, 106.1E). Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. Commands are sent from middle schools through a Mission Operations Gateway at the University of California, San Diego, to a Thinkpad on the Shuttle flight deck. Images are transmitted back to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory where they are immediately placed on the Internet for the KidSat students and the rest of the world to view and use. High school and undergraduate students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
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Mosaic image of fires in Ind
…
PIA00950
Sol (our sun)
Electronic Still Camera
| Title |
Mosaic image of fires in Indonesia |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
Middle school students across the country photographed the fires and smoke over southern Sumatra from a camera aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis September 27. A joint effort between 23 of the 52 schools participating in this mission, the KidSat camera was used to image a 140 km wide, 1950 km long strip that starts in the northwest (5.24 degrees N, 97.11 degrees E), and follows the Pegunungan Barisan range across the equator to the southern tip of Sumatra 7.44S, 106.1E [MET 00215343 - 00215750]. Smoldering underground fires have raged uncontrolled for the past few weeks in Southeast Asia. Originally set to clear land for agriculture, the fires are usually extinguished by the annual monsoon rains. However, this year, the rains had not come due to El Niño which produces dry conditions in the Indonesia region. Due to the lack of trade winds, the seasonal warm waters in the eastern Pacific have spread over to South America. Consequently, the water temperature in Indonesia has dropped significantly. This decrease in temperature has not produced enough warm water vapor to produce the normal seasonal showers that usually encompass the area. The fire has now been blamed for two fatal accidents and countless health hazards. At one point, the pollution index of the region reached 839. To put a relative point to this number, a pollution index of 300 is a equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes a day. The smoke, during one time, blanketed an area that was larger than the continental United States. Currently, the fire's rage has been quelled by winds and rain which have lifted the smog and dampened the fires. However it is estimated that 100,000 fire fighters are needed to stop the fire. The KidSat image shown here is a mosaic of three images of the 16 image series (Mission Elapsed Time) 00215624, 00215637, 00215701, the center latitude and longitude of each image, respectively, is 3.0 degrees S 102.9 degrees E, 3.7 degrees S 103.4 degrees E, 4.9 degrees S 104.3 degrees E and is 140 km wide and 400 km long. The images were captured on September 27, 1997 during Shuttle flight STS-86. Starting in the south (right) and traveling northwest (left), a clear view is visible of the southern tip of Sumatra with the volcanoes that make up the backbone of the island appearing darker than the surrounding land. Further northwest, the first smoke plumes appear in the rain forests east of the mountains where land is being cleared for palm plantations, the plumes indicate a prevailing wind to the northwest. Within a short distance, the region becomes completely blanketed in smoke with only the peaks of the volcanoes rising above the gray haze layer. The KidSat camera that photographed these fires is mounted in the overhead starboard window of the Shuttle Atlantis and operates before and after docking with Mir when the Shuttle's windows face the Earth. Students on the ground are linked to the camera through the Internet and a series of satellites. High school and undergraduate, students work in collaboration with scientists and engineers to develop and operate the KidSat systems. Curriculum developed by The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth is used in the middle school classrooms to encourage scientific inquiry based on the images. The photographs from the three missions of the KidSat pilot program can be accessed at the following URL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/kidsat The KidSat program was developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth, and The University of California, San Diego, with support from NASA's Johnson Space Center. The project is supported by NASA's Office of Human Resources and Education with support from NASA's Offices of Mission to Planet Earth, Space Flight, and Space Science. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). |
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Indonesian Islands as seen f
…
| Title |
Indonesian Islands as seen from Gemini 11 spacecraft |
| Description |
Indonesian Islands (partial cloud cover): Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo, Sumbawa, as photographed from the Gemini 11 spacecraft during its 26th revolution of the earth, at an altitude of 570 nautical miles. |
| Date Taken |
1966-09-14 |
|
Tambora Caldera, Sumbawa Isl
…
| Title |
Tambora Caldera, Sumbawa Island, Indonesia |
| Description |
Tambora caldera on the island of Sumbawa, Indonesia (8.5S, 118.0E) is a large crater formed in 1815 when a huge volcanic eruption ejected millions of tons debris high into the atmosphere. The particulate matter was blown around the globe by winds, masking much of the Earth's surface from sunlight, lowering global temperatures. Snow fell in New England in June and freezes occurred in the summer of 1816 which became known as the year without a summer. |
| Date Taken |
1988-10-03 |
|
Tarakan, Kalimantan, Borneo,
…
| Title |
Tarakan, Kalimantan, Borneo, Indonesia |
| Description |
Situated on the NW coast of Borneo, the island city of Tarakan (4.0N, 117.5E) in the Kalimantan state of Borneo, Indonesia, dominates the entrance to the estuary. Like all Pacific islands, Borneo is volcanic in origin and much of it's volcanic past can still be observed today. The large volcano just to the north of the delta is Mt. Magdalena and a line of older, almost eroded volcanic features can be seen extending east and northeast to the coast. |
| Date Taken |
1989-05-08 |
|
Island of Timor, Indonesia
| Title |
Island of Timor, Indonesia |
| Description |
This almost totally cloud free, photo of the island of Timor, Indonesia (9.0S, 125.0E) illustrates the volcanic origin of the over 1500 islands of Indonesia. Close examination of the photo reveals several eroded volcanoes on the Island of Timor and several of the adjacent islands. The linear alignment of the volcanoes, as seen from space, indicates the edges of the tectonic plates of the Earth's crust where volcanic activity is most common. |
| Date Taken |
1989-11-27 |
|
Muria Volcano, Island of Jav
…
| Title |
Muria Volcano, Island of Java, Indonesia |
| Description |
This view of the north coast of central Java, Indonesia centers on the currently inactive Muria Volcano (6.5S, 111.0E). Muria is 5,330 ft. tall and lies just north of Java's main volcanic belt which runs east - west down the spine of the island attesting to the volcanic origin of the more than 1,500 Indonesian Islands. |
| Date Taken |
1991-08-11 |
|
Indonesia, Sumatra, Singapor
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| Title |
Indonesia, Sumatra, Singapore |
| Description |
This view shows the area around Northeastern Sumatra, Indonesia (1.0N, 104.0E). The city of Singapore and the Singapore Strait is in the center at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. The Singapore Strait is the eastern extension of the Strait of Malacca and separates the Malay Peninsula from Sumatra. Large sediment plumes from the rivers attest to the local soil erosion and industrial dumping ofd wastes. |
| Date Taken |
1991-08-11 |
|
Volcanoes, Central Java, Ind
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| Title |
Volcanoes, Central Java, Indonesia |
| Description |
The island of Java (8.0S, 112.0E), perhaps better than any other, illustrates the volcanic origin of Pacific Island groups. Seen in this single view are at least a dozen once active volcano craters. Alignment of the craters even defines the linear fault line of Java as well as the other some 1500 islands of the Indonesian Archipelago. Deep blue water of the Indian Ocean to the south contrasts to the sediment laden waters of the Java Sea to the north. |
| Date Taken |
1992-08-08 |
|
Volcanoes in Central Java, I
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| Title |
Volcanoes in Central Java, Indonesia |
| Description |
The Indonesian island of Java (8.0S, 112.0) has over 35 active volcanoes, some of which are the most explosive in the world, and form an east/west line of peaks the length of the island. Five are in this image and at least one is thought to be currently active. The plume flowing north from Welirang (just east of the central cloud mass) is believed to be steam emissions. Also, the lack of vegetation at the peak indicates volcanic activity. |
| Date Taken |
1991-09-13 |
|
Major Land Clearing Fires, K
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| Title |
Major Land Clearing Fires, Kalimantan, Borneo, Indonesia |
| Description |
These many and intense land clearing fires in the Kalimantan region of the island of Borneo, Indonesia (3.5S, 113.5E) are indicative of the many deforestation activities on a worldwide scale. In order to feed and house ever increasing populations, more cleared land is required for agriculture to feed ever increasing populations. More pasture lands are needed for livestock. And, more cleared lands are needed for housing. |
| Date Taken |
1991-09-18 |
|
Open Ocean Internal Waves ne
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| Title |
Open Ocean Internal Waves near Borneo |
| Description |
This unusual packet of internal waves was observed in Indonesia off the coast of Borneo (8.0N, 119.0E) early in the mission. These internal waves are thought to form at the boundries between water layers of different salinity or tempeature. The surface expression of these waves is very subtle but it can be seen quite readily from space in sunglint conditions. Several small eddies can also be seen in the sunglint pattern. |
| Date Taken |
1992-05-16 |
|
STS-55 Earth observation of
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| Title |
STS-55 Earth observation of the Timor Sea |
| Description |
STS-55 Earth observation taken from Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102, shows the Timor Sea along the south coast of Timor. The sunglint pattern shows a sharp boundary in sea surface temperature, with cooler water along the coast and warmer water offshore. The sunglint brightness reveals water surface roughness with bright indicating smooth water and dark representing rough water. Cooler water is smoother because it acts to stabilize the atmospheric boundary layer, while the warm water acts to destabilize the atmosphere. Another indication of water temperature is the cloud pattern. Advection within the atmosphere as a result of warming at the sea surface forms low-level clouds with the small, popcorn-like appearance seen in upper right corner of the photograph. The cool water, on the other hand, is relatively free of the popcorn-like clouds. The distribution of the clouds indicates that the wind is blowing toward the upper right corner of the photograph. Also note the line of low-level |
| Date Taken |
1993-05-06 |
|
STS-65 Earth observation of
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| Title |
STS-65 Earth observation of northern Australia (winter burning) from OV-102 |
| Description |
STS-65 Earth observation taken aboard Columbia, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102, shows late winter burning in northern Australia and the extreme northern coastal area that includes the Cobourg Peninsula, as well as Melville and Bathurst Islands. These fires were probably set intentionally to renew pasture under open canopy woodland. The very dark lowland areas on Melville Island represent mangrove woodland. In contrast to some other tropical regions (for example Madagascar and Indonesia), no soil erosion (sediment plumes) is visible in this photograph. |
| Date Taken |
1994-07-23 |
|
Indonesia as seen from STS-6
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| Title |
Indonesia as seen from STS-66 shuttle Atlantis |
| Description |
This is a striking, oblique view to the south of the Indonesian islands of Java (right), Bali and Lombok (upper left). The linear array of dark regions across the photo is a chain of volcanoes which make up the back bone of this part of the Indonesian Islands. This chain has been quite active over the past six months. Plumes of steam can be seen rising from the summits of Arjuno (west-central Java) and Merapi (central Java, near the right side of this photo). The region appears hazy due to an extended drought over Indonesia and Australia. Because of drought conditions, huge fires continue to burn over other regions of Indonesia, New Guinea and norther Australia, producing a regional smoke pall. |
| Date Taken |
1994-11-14 |
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