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  Image: Geographic Location Direction Photo #: ISS022-E-74881 Date: Feb. 2010
Geographic Region: CHILE
Feature: CONCEPCION, HUALPEN, BIO BIO RIVER, AIRPORT

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  View Low-Resolution Image  
  Smoke Plumes over Concepcion, Chile, Following Large Earthquake

This detailed astronaut photograph of the Chilean cities of Concepcion and Hualpen was acquired from the International Space Station approximately seven hours after a magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred offshore 115 kilometers (71 miles) to the north-northeast. Much of the Chilean coastline is located above the boundary between the converging Nazca and South American tectonic plates. This type of plate boundary is known as a subduction zone. Such zones frequently experience moderate to strong earthquakes as one tectonic plate overrides the other. The largest earthquake worldwide during the past 200 years (magnitude 9.5 in May 1960) had a source region approximately 230 kilometers (140 miles) south of the February 27 quake.

While the image is not detailed enough to see damage to individual buildings or roadways, some indicators of earthquake damage are visible, especially in the large version of the image. A dark smoke plume is visible at image lower left near an oil refinery in Hualpen. At image lower right, parts of the road bed of a single-lane bridge over the Rio Biobio appear to have collapsed. A smaller, white smoke plume is visible at image right near the Universidad de Concepcion. Smoke, probably related to the earthquake, was observed over Santiago in images acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer on NASA's Terra satellite less than one hour after this astronaut photograph was taken.
 
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Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 250k
Mission: ISS022  
Roll - Frame: E - 74881
Geographical Name: CHILE  
Features: CONCEPCION, HUALPEN, BIO BIO RIVER, AIRPORT  
Center Lat x Lon: 36.8S x 73.1W
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 10
 
Camera: N2
 
Camera Tilt: 29   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 800  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: SE   The direction from the nadir to the center point, N=North, S=South, E=East, W=West
Stereo?:   Y=Yes there is an adjacent picture of the same area, N=No there isn't
Orbit Number: 620  
 
Date: 20100227   YYYYMMDD
Time: 133538   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 35.3S  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 74W  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 74   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 192   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 35   Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views:  
Water Views:  
Atmosphere Views: PLUME, SMOKE  
Man Made Views: BRIDGE  
City Views: CONCEPCION, SANTIAGO  
Photo is not associated with any sequences


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