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  Image: Geographic Location Direction Photo #: ISS064-E-343 Date: Oct. 2020
Geographic Region: GALAPAGOS ISLANDS
Feature: SUNGLINT, ISLA SANTA CRUZ, ISLA SANTIAGO, ISLA FERNANDINA, VOLCAN LA CUMBRE, VOLCAN WOLF, VOLCAN CERRO AZUL

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This photograph, taken by an astronaut from the International Space Station, offers a peek at several of the Galápagos Islands, visible between cloud cover and accented by sunglint on the ocean surface.

The sunglint helps reveal features that are usually hard to spot, such as the lake occupying the summit caldera of La Cumbre, the shield volcano that makes up Fernandina Island. The youngest and most active volcanic island in the Galápagos archipelago, Fernandina formed less than one million years ago, with its most recent eruption occurring in January 2020. The lake formed after the collapse of La Cumbre’s summit caldera during a violent eruption in 1968. It changes volume with each eruption.

The reflected sunlight also reveals internal wave packets surrounding the Galápagos Islands. Such imagery of internal waves and their movement can help researchers to estimate potential changes in the water column and to observe effects of climate change on marine communities. For example, coral bleaching may be influenced by the upwelling and transport of water that is above or below normal temperature ranges.

The Galápagos island chain is home to at least 9000 species, including the giant tortoise, the land iguana, the Galápagos penguin. The majority of native reptiles and land birds in the archipelago are rarely found elsewhere on Earth. In 1959, in an effort to preserve and protect its native wildlife, the Ecuadorian government declared the entirety of the Galápagos to be a national park. This fragile environment is under threat from the increasing intensity of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation due to climate change.



 
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Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 432k
Mission: ISS064  
Roll - Frame: E - 343
Geographical Name: GALAPAGOS ISLANDS  
Features: SUNGLINT, ISLA SANTA CRUZ, ISLA SANTIAGO, ISLA FERNANDINA, VOLCAN LA CUMBRE, VOLCAN WOLF, VOLCAN CERRO AZUL  
Center Lat x Lon: 0.5S x 91W
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 50
 
Camera: N8
 
Camera Tilt: 34   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 50  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: W   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:  
 
Date: 20201024   YYYYMMDD
Time: 200811   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 0.3S  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 88.5W  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 251   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 227   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 51   Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views:  
Water Views:  
Atmosphere Views:  
Man Made Views:  
City Views:  
Photo is not associated with any sequences


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