Photo #: ISS034-E-24622 Date: Jan. 2013Geographic Region: PACIFIC OCEAN
Feature: NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS,ATMOSPHERE LIMB
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Photo #: ISS034-E-24622 Date: Jan. 2013 Geographic Region: PACIFIC OCEAN Feature: NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS,ATMOSPHERE LIMB |
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| Polar Mesospheric Clouds, South Pacific Ocean Polar mesospheric clouds--also known as noctilucent, or "night shining" clouds--are formed 76 to 85 kilometers above the Earth's surface near the mesosphere-thermosphere boundary of the atmosphere, a region known as the mesopause. At these altitudes, water vapor can freeze into clouds of ice crystals. When the Sun is below the horizon such that the ground is in darkness, these high clouds may still be illuminated--lending them their ethereal, "night shining" qualities. Noctilucent clouds have been observed from all human vantage points in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres - from the surface, in aircraft, and in orbit from the International Space Station (ISS)--and tend to be most visible during the late spring and early summer seasons. Polar mesospheric clouds also are of interest to scientists studying the atmosphere. While some scientists seek to understand their mechanisms of formation, others have identified them as potential indicators of atmospheric changes resulting from increases in greenhouse gas concentrations. This astronaut photograph was taken when the ISS was over the Pacific Ocean south of French Polynesia. While most polar mesospheric cloud images are taken from the ISS with relatively short focal length lens to maximize the field of view, this image was taken with a long lens (400 mm) allowing for additional detail of the cloud forms to be seen. Below the brightly-lit noctilucent clouds in the center of the image, the pale orange band indicates the stratosphere. |
| Images: | All Available Images Low-Resolution 74k |
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| Mission: | ISS034 |
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| Roll - Frame: | E - 24622 |
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| Geographical Name: | PACIFIC OCEAN |
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| Features: | NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS,ATMOSPHERE LIMB |
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| Center Lat x Lon: | N x E |
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| Film Exposure: | N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus |
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| Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: | 75 |
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| Camera:: | N5 |
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| Camera Tilt: | HO | LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical |
| Camera Focal Length: | 400 |
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| Nadir to Photo Center Direction: | The direction from the nadir to the center point, N=North, S=South, E=East, W=West |
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| Stereo?: | Y=Yes there is an adjacent picture of the same area, N=No there isn't |
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| Orbit Number: | |
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| Date: | 20130105 | YYYYMMDD |
| Time: | 102038 | GMT HHMMSS |
| Nadir Lat: | 51.4S |
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft |
| Nadir Lon: | 163.3W |
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft |
| Sun Azimuth: | 189 | Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point |
| Space Craft Altitude: | 229 | nautical miles |
| Sun Elevation: | -16 | Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point |
| Land Views: | |
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| Water Views: | OCEAN |
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| Atmosphere Views: | NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS |
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| Man Made Views: | |
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| City Views: | |
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Photo is not associated with any sequences | ||
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