Earth from Space - Image Description

STS028-074-070 Rocky Mountains, Canada and United States August 1989
The southern extent of the Canadian Rocky Mountains is revealed in this low-oblique photograph, which encompasses a large geographic area centered near the junction of southeast British Columbia and northwest Montana. The northwest-southeast-trending of multiple parallel ridges and glacial valleys is obvious. Even though the photograph was made in the summer, there is snow on many of the elevated peaks and ridge lines, primarily on those farther north in Canada. Visible near the northwestern side of the photograph is the large U-shaped valley of the Kootenay River, a south-flowing river that eventually empties into the Columbia River. Fairly large cultivated field patterns are observed in the valley north of Flathead Lake (discernible near the south edge of the photograph) near Kalispell, Montana.

This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Earth Science & Remote Sensing Unit, ARES Division, Exploration Integration Science Directorate.