Earth from Space - Image Information


LOCATION Direction Photo #: ISS058-E-1605 Date: Dec. 2018
Geographic Region: USA-ARIZONA
Feature: GRAND CANYON, COLORADO R., SNOW


 
Grand Canyon Under Snow

On a bright winter's day, an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) focused a camera on the Grand Canyon and surrounding snowy landscapes in northern Arizona, many of which are federally protected lands. The Native American Indian reservations and the Vermillion Cliffs National Monument. Snow that fell at warmer, lower elevations - inside the Grand Canyon or in the parts of the nearby desert - melted quickly or did not reach the ground.

Dense greens are another feature that help astronauts understand the landscapes they see from space. In the desert southwest of North America, higher elevations get more rain and snow. Thus the high Kaibab Plateau is wet enough for forests to thrive, while the main colors of the low country are browns and tans of rocks and desert soils.

Astronauts also get some sense of topography from shadows and sunlight. This image was taken from an orbital vantage point over Las Vegas, nearly 400 kilometers (240 miles) to the west. The view is oblique enough to give a slightly three-dimensional view, especially from shadows like those cast by the Grand Canyon cliffs and the narrow canyons around the Colorado River.

The same snow-covered and snow-free features can be recognized in this more vertical view shot the following day. This summertime view shows the area without snow.



Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 472k
Mission: ISS058  
Roll - Frame: E - 1605
Geographical Name: USA-ARIZONA  
Features: GRAND CANYON, COLORADO R., SNOW  
Center Lat x Lon: 36.4N x 111.7W
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 10
 
Camera:: N8
 
Camera Tilt: 50   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 116  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: E   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: 20181229   YYYYMMDD
Time: 190057   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 37.1N  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 116W  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 168   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 216   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 29   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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This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Earth Science & Remote Sensing Unit, ARES Division, Exploration Integration Science Directorate.
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