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Heatwave in Southern Califor
…
| Title |
Heatwave in Southern California |
| Description |
September 5, 2007, marked the end of a week-long heat wave that led to 31 deaths and triggered power outages across southern California, reported the L.A. Times. Temperatures climbed above 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) when a high-pressure system blocked cool air from the Pacific. The effect of the heat wave on different locations in the Southwest is shown in this pair of images, taken on September 5, at 11:25 a.m. local time (18:25 UTC) by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) flying on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ], in Northern California filters down from the top edge of the scene. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained from the Goddard Land Processes data archives (LAADS). [ http://laads.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ], satellite. The photo-like, natural-color image (top) and corresponding land surface temperature image (bottom) illustrate the relationship between land cover, elevation, and temperature. The images show much of California and Nevada, and a smaller portion of Arizona and Utah. Not surprisingly, the hottest areas, shown in yellow, correspond with sparsely vegetated desert regions. In the natural-color image, the brush-covered Mojave Desert on the California-Nevada border is tan with splashes of pink where iron-rich sandstone is exposed. The small-leafed, woody vegetation provides little shade, allowing the Earth's surface to be exposed to the Sun. The rock-and-dirt desert absorbs sunlight, and temperatures climb (yellow areas of bottom image). The other hot spots in the image occur in the cactus-dotted Sonoran Desert, which encompasses the southernmost portions of inland California and southwestern Arizona, and the much smaller Colorado Desert west of the Salton Sea. Irrigated land south of the Salton Sea and along the Colorado River is a web of brown-green. The presence of water and vegetation in these irrigated areas makes the land cooler. Elevation also plays a role in the surface temperatures of the Sonoran Desert. Pockets of low-elevation land are much warmer than the lines of mountains that separate them, particularly in southwestern Arizona. The coolest parts of California, shown in purple and blue, are in the mountains, most prominently the Sierra Nevada, but also the San Bernardino Mountains east of Los Angeles. In the photo-like images, the mountain ranges are dark green, colored by trees. The vegetation cover and the high elevation keep the land cooler than surrounding low-elevation sites. The other significant cool spot in the image is the San Joaquin Valley. Like the irrigated farm land bordering the Salton Sea and the Colorado River, this area is kept cool by the presence of water and plants. The coldest areas in the image appear to be in Arizona, Utah, and Nevada, which are marked by streaks of dark purple. These cold signatures are from clouds.The final correlation between land cover and temperature can be seen in urban areas along the coast. In the photo-like image, Los Angles sprawls as a silver-gray patch from the coast to the San Bernardino Mountains. Since urban surfaces absorb heat, Los Angles is slightly warmer in the surface temperature image than the surrounding landscape. In the north, the San Francisco urban area is similarly warmer than its surroundings. Though the extreme temperatures raised the fire danger in Southern California, MODIS did not detect any fires in the region. Fires, marked with red dots, were burning in Central California south and east of San Francisco. Smoke from a large fire [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14497 ] |
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Low Pressure off Northern Ca
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| Title |
Low Pressure off Northern California Coast |
| Description |
The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS), flying aboard the Orbview-2 satellite, captured this view of a massive low pressure system approaching the northern California coast. High winds, heavy rain, and significant snows (elevations above 7,000 feet) are expected today as this strong storm spins onshore. Monterey Bay, Point Conception, and Los Angeles are visible along the California coast below the storm. Inland, the thick white vertical stripe is the Sierra Nevada Mountains, still covered in snow. To the right of Los Angeles is a dark irregular feature—the Salton Sea. Below the Salton is a region of irrigated cropland that produces fruits and vegetables throughout the winter. There appears to be a significant amount of biological activity in the Pacific Coastal waters around the Channel Islands, off California's southern coast as well as in the Gulf of California. Note the dark green and turquoise patterns in the water, indicating the presence of phytoplankton blooms. 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 |
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Heatwave in Southern Califor
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
September 5, 2007, marked th
…
california_tmo_2007248_lst_l
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| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-05 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
california_tmo_2007248_lst_lrg |
|
Heatwave in Southern Califor
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
September 5, 2007, marked th
…
california_tmo_2007248_lst_l
…
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-05 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
california_tmo_2007248_lst_lrg |
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Low Pressure off Northern Ca
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nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
The Sea-viewing Wide Field-o
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S2003117202723.L1A_HMBR
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2003-04-29 |
| creator |
NASA -- Image courtesy the seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEAWIFS.html SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE |
| identifier |
S2003117202723.L1A_HMBR |
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Heat Wave in Southern Califo
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
September 5, 2007, marked th
…
ge_08024
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-05 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained from the laads.gsfc.nasa.gov/ Goddard Land Processes data archives (LAADS). |
| identifier |
ge_08024 |
|
Heat Wave in Southern Califo
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
September 5, 2007, marked th
…
ge_08024
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-05 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data obtained from the laads.gsfc.nasa.gov/ Goddard Land Processes data archives (LAADS). |
| identifier |
ge_08024 |
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Shaded Relief with Color as
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PIA03333
Sol (our sun)
C-Band Interferometric Radar
| Title |
Shaded Relief with Color as Height, California Mosaic |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
The diversity of landforms that make up the state of California is evident in this new rendition of the 3-D topography of the state. The Central Valley, flanked on the east by the Sierra Nevada, dominates the scene with San Francisco and Monterey Bays clearly visible at left center. Other features of interest include Lake Tahoe at the edge to the right of San Francisco, Mono Lake below Lake Tahoe, and the Salton Sea at the lower right. The prominent sideways "V" in the southern part of the state is the intersection of the Garlock and San Andreas Faults - to the east is the Mojave Desert. Offshore are the Channel Islands and to the right of them lies the city of Los Angeles. Two visualization methods were combined to produce this image: shading and color coding of topographic height. The shade image was derived by computing topographic slope in the northwest-southeast direction. North-facing slopes appear bright and south-facing slopes appear dark. Color coding is directly related to topographic height, with blue and green at the lower elevations, rising through yellow and brown to white at the highest elevations. Elevation data used in this image was acquired by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, launched on February 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 Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) 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 Earth Science Enterprise, Washington, D.C. Size: 950 by 1100 kilometers ( 590 by 680 miles) Location: 32.5-42 deg. North lat., 114-125 deg. West lon. Orientation: North toward the top Image Data: Shaded and colored SRTM elevation model Original Data Resolution: SRTM 1 arcsecond (30 meters or 98 feet) Date Acquired: February 2000 |
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Shaded Relief with Color as
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PIA03347
Sol (our sun)
C-Band Interferometric Radar
| Title |
Shaded Relief with Color as Height, California Mosaic with Insets |
| Original Caption Released with Image |
The diversity of landforms that make up the state of California is evident in this new rendition of the 3-D topography of the state. The Central Valley, flanked on the east by the Sierra Nevada, dominates the scene with San Francisco and Monterey Bays clearly visible at left center. Other features of interest include Lake Tahoe at the edge to the right of San Francisco, Mono Lake below Lake Tahoe, and the Salton Sea at the lower right. The prominent sideways "V" in the southern part of the state is the intersection of the Garlock and San Andreas Faults - to the east is the Mojave Desert. Offshore are the Channel Islands and to the right of them lies the city of Los Angeles.(see: PIA03333 [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA03333 ]) Two visualization methods were combined to produce this image: shading and color coding of topographic height. The shade image was derived by computing topographic slope in the northwest-southeast direction. North-facing slopes appear bright and south-facing slopes appear dark. Color coding is directly related to topographic height, with blue and green at the lower elevations, rising through yellow and brown to white at the highest elevations. Insets: |
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Gamma Ray Observatory over B
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| Title |
Gamma Ray Observatory over Baja California, Mexico |
| Description |
In this view of the Gamma Ray Observatory over Baja California, Mexico (31.5N, 113.0W), the Salton Sea and Imperial Valley region of California where the mouth of the Colorado River empties into the Sea of Cortez is clearly visible. The Los Angeles basin is partially visible below the GRO's left solar panel. Looking due east, across Mexico and south Texas, toward the Earth limb, the Texas Gulf coast is faintly visible. |
| Date Taken |
1991-04-11 |
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Grand Canyon as seen from ST
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| Title |
Grand Canyon as seen from STS-58 |
| Description |
A broad view westward along the Colorado River from just below Glen Canyon Dam (out of picture), through the entire Grand Canyon to Lake Mead and Las Vegas and westward to include southern Nevada and much of California. The Salton Sea, Los Angeles Basin, and Great Valley rim the Pacific Coast in the distance. |
| Date Taken |
1993-10-20 |
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