From their perch 250 miles above the Earth, astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) capture some amazing imagery. The latest from them is of a Progress supply craft as it burns up in the atmosphere upon reentry.
NASA explains:
Have you ever wondered how the astronauts and cosmonauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) take out the trash? Several times a year, robotic spacecraft carrying a variety of items—including food, water, fuel, oxygen, medical supplies, replacement parts, and research materials—are launched from Earth to dock with the ISS. These spacecraft are built and launched by ISS international partners in Russia,Japan, and the Europe. After the cargo has been transferred to the ISS, the spacecraft is refilled with refuse, and then undocked and de-orbited—essentially using the Earth’s atmosphere as an incinerator for both the spent spacecraft and the refuse.
This astronaut photograph highlights the reentry plasma trail of one such spacecraft, the ISS Progress 42P supply vehicle (Russian designation M-10M). The Progress is based on the Soyuz design, and can fly autonomously or under remote control from the space station. Progress 42P docked at the ISS on April 29, 2011, and was undocked and de-orbited on October 29, 2011. Astronauts on the ISS took a time-lapse sequence of the event; the image above is part of that sequence.
The ISS was located over the southern Pacific Ocean when this image was taken. Light from the rising sun illuminates the curvature of the Earth limb (horizon line) at image top, but does not completely overwhelm the airglow visible at image top left. Airglow is the emission of light by atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere when they are excited by ultraviolet radiation.
Image of the Progress 42P as it burns up in the atmosphere on October 29, 2011. (NASA)
Once a year the nighttime sky is lit up with fragments of Comet Swift-Tuttle. The Perseid meteor shower peaked last week and while a bright full moon limited viewing on Earth, astronauts on the International Space Station captured stunning imagery of the event.
Every 133 years Comet Swift-Tuttle makes a pass through the inner solar system spewing dust and gravel behind it. According to NASA, the debris zone is so wide that the Earth spends weeks inside of it.
The fragments from the comet slam into our atmosphere at an astounding 144,000 miles per hour and light up the night sky as they burn up. Most of these meteoroids are the size of grains of sand but some can be as large as marbles.
Called Perseids because they seem to fly out of the constellation Perseus in the northeast August sky, the end result is a bevy of shooting stars across the night sky. This past Saturday, the ISS crew was able to grab an image of a meteoroid shooting into the atmosphere as the station passed over China.
Image taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station on August 13, 2011. (NASA)
From NASA:
Many people have spent time outdoors under a dark sky, watching for “shooting stars” to streak across the firmament. In some cultures, this event is an occasion to make a wish; in others it is viewed as a herald of important events, such as the birth of a future ruler. While not actual stars, “shooting stars” do come from outer space, in the form of meteoroids entering the Earth’s atmosphere.
Meteoroids are small objects moving through the solar system that are attracted to the Earth by its gravitational pull. These small objects—typically fragments of asteroids or comets, though they can also originate from the Moon or Mars—begin to heat and burn up as they collide with air molecules in Earth’s atmosphere, creating a bright vapor trail or streak. At this point, the object is known as a meteor. If any remnant of the object survives to impact the Earth’s surface, it becomes known as a meteorite. While most meteorites are natural in origin, on occasion manmade space debris can reenter the atmosphere and also become a meteor or even a meteorite!
This astronaut photograph, taken from the International Space Station while over China (approximately 400 kilometers to the northwest of Beijing), provides the unusual perspective of looking down on a meteor as it passes through the atmosphere. The image was taken on August 13, 2011, during the Perseid Meteor Shower that occurs every August. The Perseid meteors are particles that originate from Comet Swift-Tuttle; the comet’s orbit is close enough for these particles to be swept up by the Earth’s gravitational field every year—leading to one of the most dependable meteor shower displays.
Green and yellow airglow appears in thin layers above the limb of the Earth, extending from image left to the upper right. Atoms and molecules above 50 kilometers in the atmosphere are excited by sunlight during the day, and then release this energy at night, producing primarily green light that is observable from orbit. Part of a space station solar panel is visible at image upper right; behind the panel, a bright region indicates the Sun low on the horizon.
Astronaut photograph ISS028-E-24847 was acquired on August 13, 2011, with a Nikon D3S digital camera using a 22 mm lens, and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by the Expedition 28 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. Lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Caption by William L. Stefanov, Jacobs/ESCG at NASA-JSC.
When the Space Shuttle Atlantis came to a slow stop on the runway at Kennedy Space Center on July 21, it was the end of an era of spaceflight. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station captured amazing imagery of Atlantis’ last descent through the atmosphere.
It was a sad day for many Americans when the space shuttle era came to a close with the last shuttle mission. Shifting priorities, lack of direction and leadership and politics have all wreaked havoc with the United States’ space program.
As Atlantis is prepared for retirement as a museum piece along with her sister ships, NASA is left without a way of its own to put a human in space. Meanwhile, cash-strapped Russia manages to forge ahead with its Soyuz program and an emerging space power in China threatens our nation’s leadership in space.
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station captured this image of Space Shuttle Atlantis as it returned to the Earth on July 21, 2011. (NASA)
From NASA:
Like a comet streaking across the atmosphere, the Space ShuttleAtlantis left space for the final time on July 21, 2011, descending to a smooth landing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This astronaut photograph, taken from the vantage of the International Space Station (ISS), shows the streak of an ionized plasma plume created by the shuttle’s descent through the atmosphere.
At the time of the image, the ISS was positioned northwest of the Galapagos Islands, while Atlantis was roughly 2,200 kilometers (1,367 miles) to the northeast, off the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. The maximum angle of the shuttle’s descent was roughly 20 degrees, though it appears much steeper in the photo because of the oblique viewing angle from ISS. Parts of the space station are visible in the upper right corner of the image.
In the background of the image, airglow hovers over the limb of the Earth. Airglow occurs as atoms and molecules high in the atmosphere (above 80 kilometers, or 50 miles altitude) release energy at night after being excited by sunlight (particularly ultraviolet) during the day. Much of the green glow can be attributed to oxygen molecules.
Coronal Mass Ejection as viewed by the Solar Dynamics Observatory on June 7, 2011. (NASA/SDO) Click the image for a larger version.
A massive solar flare was unleashed today by the Sun in an impressive display captured in stunning imagery and video. These events can be very hazardous to the Earth but NASA said due to the direction of the eruption, we will escape most of its effects.
The flare was part of a three-hour long event that peaked at 1:41am EDT (11:41pm MDT). Captured on film and video by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), the display is amazing.
The large cloud of particles is seen spewing an incredible cloud of magnetic plasma into space. It then rains back down on an area covering half of the surface of the sun.
Did you know you can monitor space weather right here on ThorntonWeather.com? Check it out!
Earth appears to have been spared the effect of the coronal mass ejection (CME). Some such events can be damaging to electronics including satellites and vulnerable power grids. NASA said the CME is expected to arrive late on June 8th or 9th and auroras at higher latitudes may be more pronounced.
Satellite imagery released by the USGS and NASA (below) shows the scar the EF3 tornado left on the earth as it ripped a path 39 miles long. The image taken by Landsat shows the path of the half-mile wide tornado as it cut through Sturbridge and beyond.
The twister first touched down near Westfield and then moved into Springfield after crossing the Connecticut River. Both areas saw extensive damage to buildings and homes as the twister moved through.
As it moved east the tornado debarked trees and struck the town of Monson where extensive damage was seen. It eventually hit Brimfield Sate Forest and then the Southbridge Airport.
When it was done, four people were killed and 200 injured. Latest estimates put the damage cost at $90 million making it the most costly natural disaster in the state’s history.
Two smaller, EF1 rated tornadoes also struck nearby on the same day. One caused a damage path 3.6 miles long and the other 1.3 miles long.
Image taken by the Landsat satellite on June 5, 2011 showing the damage path from an EF3 tornado that struck Massachusetts on June 1, 2011. Click the image for a larger version. (USGS / NASA)
National parks are some of the nation’s most valuable and beautiful areas. Colorado is home to four of them and NASA satellites recently captured images of what may become our next one.
Colorado National Monument sits southwest of Grand Junction and contains extraordinarily beautiful and rugged terrain. In 1907, John Otto wrote of the area saying, “I came here last year and found these canyons, and they feel like the heart of the world to me. I’m going to stay and build trails and promote this place, because it should be a national park.”
Otto would not see his dream realized. Instead, in 1911, President William Howard Taft established the Colorado National Monument through a Presidential Proclamation.
NASA satellite imagery reveals that at one point in January 2011 the nation saw its fifth largest snow cover extent. Click the image for a larger view. (NASA)
How much snow has fallen this season in Colorado all depends on where you are. The high country has continued to see snowfall far in excess of normal while here on the Plains we remain mostly dry. For the nation, a new NASA satellite image reveals that 71 percent of it was covered in snow at one point last month.
The new image (right), taken by NASA’s Terra satellite using its Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), reveals a snow covered contiguous United States in January.
The image uses false colors to show the snow extent and the length of time it was on the ground. White areas were completely covered with snow for most of the month whereas the pale green areas had snow for part of the month or were only partly snowy.
On January 12, 71 percent was covered in snow – the fifth largest amount of snow cover in the past 45 years. In fact, 49 of the 50 states had snow thanks to a significant winter storm that pummeled the Gulf Coast states with Florida being the only hold out.
Despite the expansive snow cover, the National Climatic Data Center said that January 2011 was the ninth-driest January in the United States since 1894. Further, while snow reached the Gulf Coast states, the southern half of the nation has been very dry with a large area from stretching Arizona to Virginia considered in various stages of drought.
Eastern Colorado is now seeing areas of moderate to severe drought as the lack of snowfall we have seen takes its toll. In Denver we have recorded only 18.1 inches of snow so far this season – 21.5 inches below what we would normally see through the end of February. Thornton has barely fared better recording 18.5 inches so far.
February 10, 2011 - Satellite image of Colorado and surrounding states showing the extensive snow cover. Click the image for a larger version. (NASA)
The recent snowstorm covered not only Thornton but the vast majority of Colorado in a blanket of white. The latest satellite imagery from NASA shows the extent of the snow stretching across the state from border to border.
The satellite image, taken by NASA’s Aqua satellite on February 10th, shows the impressive snowfall received by the entire region. Not only is Colorado covered but the neighboring states of Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas are covered in snow as well.
Snow cover across Colorado as imaged by NASA satellites on January 12, 2011. View a larger image below and images of snow elsewhere in the nation.
Snow cover across the lower 48 states jumped to more than 70% in recent days as a number of snowstorms dumped a blanket of white. NASA satellites took some extraordinary images of not only Colorado but also the South and the northeastern U.S.
Here in Colorado our recent storm brought nearly 6 inches of snow to Thornton and deposited a pretty solid layer across most of the state. Warm weather today and in the coming days will make short work of it though, particularly on the eastern half of the state.
Little Rock, Arkansas reported 5.6 inches of snow, Atlanta 3.0 inches and 7.0 inches fell on Tupelo, Mississippi, Asheville, North Carolina and New Boston, Texas. Adding to the problems was ice which coated some places up to an inch and a half thick.
The same storm system that wreaked havoc in the south moved to the northeast and brought snow from the Mid-Atlantic to New England. The region was buried by a major snowstorm right after Christmas and while this storm wasn’t near as bad, it added to the misery.
The images below were taken yesterday by NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites and are impressive testaments to the powerful winter weather. For more on all of these storm systems, be sure to visit the Natural Disasters Examiner.
Widespread snow from the Sierra Nevada to the Colorado Rockies snarled travel leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday. As the holiday weekend wraps up, NASA has released satellite imagery showing just thousands of square miles coated in a blanket of white.
Read more below the image.
NASA's Terra satellite captured stunning imagery of the pre-Thanksgiving snow across the western United States.
The winter weather conditions delayed flights and forced road closures starting last weekend and lasting up to Thanksgiving. Some of the snow totals from Saturday the 20th through Saturday the 27th include:
Salt Lake City, Utah – 9.9 inches
Pocatello, Idaho – 9.0 inches
Boise, Idaho -5.0 inches
Elko, Nevada – 8.4 inches
Yakima, Washington – 6.2 inches
Missoula, Montana – 8.4 inches
Much higher amounts were recorded in the higher elevations making for very happy ski resorts and skiers. Alpine Meadows near Lake Tahoe reported 8.5 feet of snow at mid-mountain. In Wyoming, Jackson Hole opened all of its runs on its opening day, the first time it has been able to do so in 45 years.
In western Colorado ski areas were very happy to receive the snow leading up to the busy holiday season with Steamboat having its best opening in 10 years. Loveland Ski Area reported nearly 3 feet of snow depth at mid-mountain.
The image released by NASA and taken by its Terra satellite show a wide swath of snow cover from Oregon across Nevada, Idaho and Utah to Colorado. Click on the image to the above left to view the full size, high resolution image.
From NASA:
In most of the western part of the United States, Thanksgiving Day came with a coating of snow. Ski resorts from California’s Lake Tahoe region to the Colorado Rockies reported several feet of snow from a storm system that passed through in the days before, bringing a welcome early opening to the ski season. Travelers throughout the West, however, did not share skiers’ enthusiasm for the weather. Winter weather advisories were causing flight delays and cancellations throughout the northwestern-most states. The same storm system that brought as six inches of snow to Utah and Idaho on November 23 also brought heavy snow to North Dakota and Minnesota the next day. Severe wind chill conditions were reported throughout the Great Plains on November 25 as well.
This image shows a portion of the western U.S. on November 25, 2010 (Thanksgiving Day). It was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite. White snow decorates the ground from California’s Sierra range eastward throughout Nevada, Utah, and Colorado, ending at the front range of the Rockies in Colorado. Further north along the top edge of the image, the snow runs solidly from Oregon to Idaho and Wyoming off the northern and eastern edges of the image.
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