|
|
Dust clouds over eastern Chi
…
The desert takes to the skie
…
5/9/01
| Date |
5/9/01 |
| Description |
The desert takes to the skies in these images of eastern China from NASA's Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR). A hazy summer view from July 9, 2000, (left) compares with a spectacularly dusty spring view from April 7, 2001, (middle). The two images cover an area from central Manchuria near the top to portions of North and South Korea at the bottom. The image on the right is a higher resolution MISR nadir- camera view of a portion of the April 7, 2001, dust cloud. 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. 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 to 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. 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. The left-hand and middle images are from Terra orbits 2,967 and 6,928 respectively. They are approximately 380 kilometers (236 miles) in width. The right-hand image covers an area roughly 250 kilometers (155 miles) wide by 470 kilometers (292 miles) high. 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. More information about this international endeavor is available online at http://saga.pmel.noaa.gov/aceasia/ . MISR, built and managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is one of several Earth-observing experiments aboard Terra, launched in December 1999. MISR acquires images of the Earth at nine angles simultaneously, using nine separate cameras pointed forward, downward, and backward along its flight path. More information about MISR is available at http://www-misr.jpl.nasa.gov . JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Image credit: NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team. # # # # # |
|
Gobi Dust Storm
| Title |
Gobi Dust Storm |
| Description |
In early and mid-April 2006, waves of dust washed out of the Gobi Desert and spread across eastern China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan. According to news reports, a dust storm that hit South Korea [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13484 ] over the weekend of April 8 was the worst the country had seen in four years. This pair of images shows a massive wave of dust that blew out of deserts in north-central China on April 10, 2006. The top image, captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] on April 7, 2006, shows the landscape of north-central China, including two large, sandy deserts that are part of the Gobi Desert region. Just a few days later, an image from the MODIS sensor on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite shows that the area was completely hidden by a wave of bright dust that reached beyond the Yellow River. Gobi dust is whipped eastward with prevailing winds by spring storms and can spread all the way to the United States. The storms can be hazardous to public health both in terms of air quality and visibility. In addition, the dust storms can devastate croplands and contaminate sensitive electronic equipment. Dust storms in China are on the rise, probably as a result of land degradation, such as deforestation and overgrazing, and drought. The Chinese government has undertaken a large reforestation effort to combat the spread of deserts and to mitigate the effects of dust storms, particularly around urban areas such as Beijing. The large images above are provided at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_China3 ] of this area of China in a variety of formats and resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. |
|
Gobi Dust Storm
| Title |
Gobi Dust Storm |
| Description |
In early and mid-April 2006, waves of dust washed out of the Gobi Desert and spread across eastern China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan. According to news reports, a dust storm that hit South Korea [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13484 ] over the weekend of April 8 was the worst the country had seen in four years. This pair of images shows a massive wave of dust that blew out of deserts in north-central China on April 10, 2006. The top image, captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] on April 7, 2006, shows the landscape of north-central China, including two large, sandy deserts that are part of the Gobi Desert region. Just a few days later, an image from the MODIS sensor on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov ] satellite shows that the area was completely hidden by a wave of bright dust that reached beyond the Yellow River. Gobi dust is whipped eastward with prevailing winds by spring storms and can spread all the way to the United States. The storms can be hazardous to public health both in terms of air quality and visibility. In addition, the dust storms can devastate croplands and contaminate sensitive electronic equipment. Dust storms in China are on the rise, probably as a result of land degradation, such as deforestation and overgrazing, and drought. The Chinese government has undertaken a large reforestation effort to combat the spread of deserts and to mitigate the effects of dust storms, particularly around urban areas such as Beijing. The large images above are provided at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides daily images [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/subsets/?FAS_China3 ] of this area of China in a variety of formats and resolutions. NASA images courtesy the MODIS Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. |
|
Dust Cloud over Sea of Japan
| Title |
Dust Cloud over Sea of Japan |
| Description |
The dust cloud over eastern Asia was so thick on March 21, 2002, that the Korean Peninsula completely disappeared from view in this Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) image of the region. Parts of South Korea report that visibility at the surface is less than 50 m (165 feet). Airports throughout the region canceled flights due to the poor visibility. Eyewitnesses in China report that the dust was so thick in Beijing at times that visibility was limited to 100 m (330 feet), while in parts of the Gansu Province visibility was reported at less than 10 m (33 feet). Chinese officials say this is the worst dust storm to hit in more than 10 years. Dust from an earlier event still colors the air to the east of Japan. (The island of Honshu is just peeking out from under the cloud cover in these images.) Image courtesy the SeaWiFS Project, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html ] NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE |
|
Dust Storm over Eastern Chin
…
| Title |
Dust Storm over Eastern China |
| Description |
A large dust storm spread aerosols (airborne particles) over Asia and the Pacific starting on March 9, 2006. The storm reached the Beijing region [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13404 ] on March 10, and the tiny particles remained aloft for several more days. The dust cloud remained intense as it migrated eastward from China over Korea and Japan. The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) [ http://aura.gsfc.nasa.gov/instruments/omi/index.html ] flying onboard the Aura [ http://aura.gsfc.nasa.gov/index.html ] satellite captured these images on March 9, 11, and 13. These false-color images show the thickness of dust, smoke, or pollution in the atmosphere. The most intense regions of aerosols appear in bright red. As the images indicate, the aerosols from the dust storm over eastern China remained thick for days afterwards. Not all of the aerosols, however, necessarily resulted from the dust storm. The fairly thick aerosols southeast of the dust storm on March 9 probably resulted from pollution [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13405 ]. On March 11, the heavy aerosols in southeast Asia (lower left corner of image) likely resulted from agricultural fires [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13406 ]. The dust in this storm may have originated in the Gobi Desert. In March and April, dust storms in the Gobi can exceed the total number of storms in that region throughout the rest of the year. It is not uncommon for aerosols from these storms to travel around the world. Images courtesy Colin Seftor and Omar Torres, Aura Science Team. |
|
Dust Storm over Eastern Chin
…
| Title |
Dust Storm over Eastern China |
| Description |
According to Chinese news reports, a dust storm had been predicted for northern and central China between March 9 and March 12, 2006, and the prediction proved correct. On March 10, a dust storm struck the region of Beijing. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] flying onboard the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on March 10, 2006. In this mage, dust mingles with clouds over northeastern China and the Korean Peninsula. The dust cloud appears as a pale tan, slightly lighter than the underlying landscape. Dust clouds obscure the view of the city of Beijing. According to Reuters News Service, the dust resulted in a rare phenomenon in South Korea: yellow snow. Snow laced with dust can pose a health hazard, and the Korean weather bureau issued a dust warning. In northeastern China and Mongolia, the storm posed the usual hazards to respiratory tracts and eyes. The Gobi Desert was the likely source of at least some of this dust. Dust storms are far from rare in the Gobi Desert in March. Dust storms in March and April can actually exceed the number of storms for all other months combined. This storm resulted from cold air from Siberia combined with low pressure from Mongolia. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team. |
|
Dust Storm over the Yellow S
…
| Title |
Dust Storm over the Yellow Sea |
| Description |
On November 6, 2005, a massive dust storm swept southward over the Yellow Sea from northern China. This storm followed on the heels of perhaps the worst air pollution [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13250 ] in nearby Beijing in six months, according to news reports. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] flying onboard the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image on November 6. In this image, pale beige dust plumes streak southward over the Bo Hai, Korea Bay, and Yellow Sea, likely mixing with air pollutants from other parts of the country as the dust passes over the ocean. According to a news report [ http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1605041,00.html ] in The Guardian, China was named the "air pollution capital of the world" in the fall of 2005. This dust storm, however, owes its existence to more than pollution. The sandy deserts of Mongolia lie to the north, and Mongolia is one of the world's most prolific sources of dust. Yet this region produces some treasures along with natural hazards. Sandwiched between Mongolia to the north, and Bo Hai to the south, is Liaoning, a part of China that has become famous in recent years for its fossils, such as feathered dinosaurs [ http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/dinosaurs/diorama/forest.php ]. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center |
|
Smog and Sand over Beijing
| Title |
Smog and Sand over Beijing |
| Description |
Thick sand from one of China's famed sandstorms clouded the air over Beijing on April 17, 2006. The storm swept east from the border region between China and Mongolia and blanketed cities across China with gritty yellow sand. The storm was the eighth and worst such storm of 2006, reported the BBC. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] flying onboard the Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite took this picture on the morning of April 17. In this image, a thick band of tan dust obscures the view of the land surface below. Immediately east of the sandstorm are thick clouds, colored tan by the airborne dust. Along the coastlines, brownish sediments from both China and the Korean Peninsula cloud the Yellow Sea. As Terra captured this image, The Korea Times predicted that the storm would strike Korea on the evening of April 17, 2006. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the Goddard Earth Sciences DAAC. [ http://daac.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] |
|
Smog Obscures Chinese Coast
| Title |
Smog Obscures Chinese Coast |
| Description |
A thick shroud of haze lingers over China, turning the sky an opaque grey over most of the eastern provinces and almost completely blotting out details of the land surface in this true-color scene. Beijing, China?s capital city, is situated roughly 150 km (93 miles) west of Bo Hai Bay, under what appears to the densest portion of the aerosol pollution. These data were collected on January 11, 2002, by the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), flying aboard OrbView 2. The heavy aerosol concentrations can be seen blowing eastward across the Bo Hai Bay and Yellow Sea. It appears that some of the pollution has reached as far east as North and South Korea and the islands of Japan. Image courtesy the SeaWiFS Project, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/redirect?http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html ] NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE |
|
Spring Dust Storms Scour Chi
…
| Title |
Spring Dust Storms Scour China |
| Description |
Just as flowering and greening plants, migrating birds, and flooding herald the coming of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, dust storms are a sign of spring in northern China. Cold fronts from Siberia to the north bring strong winds to the deserts of Inner Mongolia. The winds pick up sand and carry it southeast over the densely populated region surrounding the Bo Hai and the Yellow Sea. In the most powerful storms, the dust may be carried all the way across the Pacific Ocean to North America. The storms subside in mid-May when warm air moves up from the southwest. On April 20, 2005, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this photo-like image of dust over the Yellow Sea. The storm that generated this dense brown cloud of dust covered much of Northern China, including Beijing, with a dusty haze. The dust blew east into Korea, where officials referred to it as the worst dust storm so far this year. The winds are expected to calm on Friday, April 22, 2005. Not all of the brown seen in this image is caused by airborne dust. Near the shores, sediment colors the water of the Yellow Sea. The brown of the sediment fades to green as the dirt is diluted in the sea. The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS' maximum resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response Team provides the image in additional resolutions. NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC. |
|
Widespread Smoke, Fires Acro
…
| Title |
Widespread Smoke, Fires Across Eastern China |
| Description |
Many fires (red pixels) were burning across the Henan Province in eastern China on June 7, 2002, filling the skies with a thick pall of greyish smoke as far north as Beijing. The smoke appears to be blowing northeastward over the Yellow Sea toward Korea and Japan. This true-color image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov ] satellite. Please note that the high-resolution scene provided here is 500 meters per pixel. For a copy of this scene at the sensor?s fullest resolution, visit the MODIS Rapidfire [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2002158-0607 ] site. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC |
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Dust from China over Japan :
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
large image from eoimages.gs
…
china_japan_dust
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2001-03-05 |
| creator |
NASA -- Provided by the seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE |
| identifier |
china_japan_dust |
|
Dust Storm over East Asia: I
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
March often brings an increa
…
ge_08477
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-03-01 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_08477 |
|
Dust Storm over East Asia: I
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
March often brings an increa
…
ge_08477
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-03-01 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ge_08477 |
|
Dust Storm over East Asia: N
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
* eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/ima
…
asdust_tmo_2008061
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2008-03-01 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
asdust_tmo_2008061 |
|
Dust Storm over the Yellow S
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
On November 6, 2005, a massi
…
ysdust_amo_2005310
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2005-11-06 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ysdust_amo_2005310 |
|
Pollution over East China: N
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
This true-color image over e
…
China_AMO2002289
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-10-16 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
China_AMO2002289 |
|
Dust Storm over Eastern Chin
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
A large dust storm spread ae
…
asia_omi_2006072
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-03-09 |
| creator |
NASA -- Images courtesy Colin Seftor and Omar Torres, Aura Science Team. |
| identifier |
asia_omi_2006072 |
|
Dust Storm Spreads Out of Go
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
In early and mid-April 2006,
…
China_dust.TMO2006097
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-10 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA images courtesy the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. |
| identifier |
China_dust.TMO2006097 |
|
Dust Storm Spreads Out of Go
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
In early and mid-April 2006,
…
China_dust.TMO2006097
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-10 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA images courtesy the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. |
| identifier |
China_dust.TMO2006097 |
|
Gobi Dust Over Northeast Chi
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
Dust blowing off the Gobi de
…
STS031-73-59_540
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
1990-04-25 |
| creator |
NASA -- Photographs eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=STS031&roll=73&frame=54 STS031-73-54 and eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=STS031&roll=73&frame=59 STS031-73-59 were provided by the eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory, eol.jsc.nasa.gov/ Johnson Space Center Additional photographs taken by astronauts can be viewed via the NASA-JSC eol.jsc.nasa.gov/sseop/ Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. |
| identifier |
STS031-73-59_540 |
|
Dust Storm over Eastern Chin
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
According to Chinese news re
…
echina_AMO_2006069
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-03-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Rapid Response team. |
| identifier |
echina_AMO_2006069 |
|
Smoke and Haze over Bo Hai,
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
NASA's terra.nasa.gov/ Terra
…
China.A2001193.0240
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2001-07-12 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, modland.nascom.nasa.gov/ MODIS Land Rapid Response Team |
| identifier |
China.A2001193.0240 |
|
Spring Dust Storms Scour Chi
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Just as flowering and greeni
…
YellowSea_TMO_2005110
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2005-04-20 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
YellowSea_TMO_2005110 |
|
Dust Obscures Korea: Image o
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
The dust cloud over eastern
…
S2002080030602.L1A_HJMS
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-03-21 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image courtesy the seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE |
| identifier |
S2002080030602.L1A_HJMS |
|
Dust Storm over Eastern Chin
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Thick sand from one of China
…
nechina_tmo_2006107
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2006-04-17 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
nechina_tmo_2006107 |
|
Widespread Smoke, Fires Acro
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Many fires (red pixels) were
…
ChinaSmoke_TMO2002158
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-06-07 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
ChinaSmoke_TMO2002158 |
|
Pollution over East China: I
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
This true-color image over e
…
ge_02879
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-10-16 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Earth Observatory image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
| identifier |
ge_02879 |
|
Pollution over East China: I
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
This true-color image over e
…
ge_02879
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2002-10-16 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Earth Observatory image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC |
| identifier |
ge_02879 |
|
Fingerprints in the Dust
PIA03405
Sol (our sun)
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroR
…
| Title |
Fingerprints in the Dust |
| 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.noaa.gov/aceasia/. 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. |
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