EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Archive - Satellite Snow Loop

January 30, 2021

Sat_loop

Every weekend we present a notable item from our archives. This EPOD
was originally published January 27, 2004.

Referred by: Lee Grenci
Summary authors & editors: Jim Foster; Lee Grenci

The satellite loop above shows a mostly snow-covered scene over a
portion of the northeastern U.S. It was taken during the late morning
and early afternoon (15:45 - 19:30 UT or 10:45 - 2:30 Eastern Standard
Time) on March 12, 2001. Notice the cloud deck approaching from the
southwest during the early afternoon hours. Snow and clouds look
similar from space, but satellite loops make monitoring and mapping
snow easier since clouds move and snow doesn't -- unless it's rapidly
melting. Also, notice that the northeastern portion of Lake Erie is
still ice-covered but that Lake Ontario (deeper than Lake Erie) is ice
free. As was mentioned with yesterday's Earth Science Picture of the
Day, dark splotches surrounded by brighter areas are more densely
forested regions, such as the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York
(upper right). However, the dark north-south streaks in southern New
York are ice-free Finger Lakes (Seneca Lake at left and Cayuga Lake at
right).


Related EPODs

Archive - Satellite Snow Loop Thunderstorm on the Mediterranean
Sea Red Sprites and GHOST Archive - Southern California
Wildfires Archive - Eye Wall of Katrina Shelf Cloud over Bonn,
Germany
More...

Severe Weather Links

* World Severe Weather Information Center
* Enhanced Fujita Scale
* A Lightning Primer
* More About Thunderstorms
* Staying Safe Outdoors in Severe Weather
* NOAA Storm Prediction Center
* Patterns of Lightning Activity
* US National Weather Service

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 6 weeks, 3 days, 21 hours, 27 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument, New Mexico

March 30, 2021

Brian sauls

Photographer: Brian Sauls
Summary Author: Brian Sauls

The unusual landforms seen above are located in the Kasha-Katuwe
Tent Rocks National Monument, located about 20 miles (32 km) west of
Santa Fe, New Mexico. Kasha-Katuwe means white cliffs in the
Keresan Pueblo language. The materials composing these cone-shaped
rock formations, or hoodoos, were deposited 6-7 million years from
pyroclastic flows associated with violent volcanic eruptions in the
nearby Jemez volcanic field. The total thickness of this volcanic
layer, consisting of distinct layers of boulder-sized rock
fragments, pumice, ash and tuff, exceeds 1,000 feet (300 m). As the
rocks eroded over the millennia, spires were created by
differential weathering and erosion, with the relatively soft
pumice and tuff layers capped by more resistant boulders which
have since toppled off. The whole array of tall pillars, which can
reach 90 feet (27 m) in height, has left a series of deep, winding and
slot-like recesses almost too narrow to walk through.
* Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument, New Mexico Coordinates:
35.660278, -106.408333

Related EPODs

Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument, New Mexico Caldera
de Taburiente National Park, Spain Opalescent Fossil Shells A
Conglomeration of Witches and Wonders Horn Park Quarry Ammonites
An Unusual Arch
More...

Geology Links

* Earthquakes
* Geologic Time
* Geomagnetism
* General Dictionary of Geology
* Mineral and Locality Database
* Mohs Scale of Mineral Hardness
* This Dynamic Earth
* USGS
* USGS Ask a Geologist
* USGS/NPS Geologic Glossary
* USGS Volcano Hazards Program

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 4 days, 22 hours, 10 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Pantanello Beach, Sicily

April 30, 2021

BarbaraP_la luna gibbosa crescente bacia il lungomare di Avola

Photographer: Barbara Pindo
Summary Author: Barbara Pindo

Shown above is Pantanello Beach, on the central-eastern coast
of Sicily (Italy), as observed near high tide on February 23, 2021.
This mostly sandy, horseshoe-shaped beach has a steep drop-off just
offshore, where currents need to be heeded. Agave plants, common
along the seaside here, help to stabilize the shoreline. Note the
waxing, gibbous Moon (at top).

Photo Details: Samsung s9 + phone camera; ISO 50; 1/800 second
exposure; f/2.4; 4.3 mm.
* Avola, Italy Coordinates: 36.9095, 15.1349

Related EPODs

Pantanello Beach, Sicily Terraces Dryland Farming Davey
Jackson’s Valley in Winter Spring Flowers on Mt. Kulis Archive
- The Continental Divide Lake Ghirla, Italy
More...

Geography Links

* Atlapedia Online
* CountryReports
* GPS Visualizer
* Holt Rinehart Winston World Atlas
* Mapping Our World
* Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection
* Types of Land
* World Mapper

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 2 weeks, 2 days, 22 hours, 42 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


The Yin and Yang of the Lunar Cycle

June 30, 2021


PSX_20210307_200345

Photographer: Soumyadeep Mukherjee
Summary Author: Soumyadeep Mukherjee

The long-planned montage shown above represents the cycle of the
Moon as observed from Kolkata, India, between November 15, 2020 and
January 14, 2021. Thought the Moon was photographed on 28 different
nights, of course the various lunar phases weren’t taken from the
same cycle. Note that the new Moon phase (top center) is simply an
underexposed version of the full moon.
Representation of the lunar cycle is nothing new, but what I was more
interested in was the representation itself. I found this ancient
yin and yang symbol to nearly perfectly match what I was looking
for -- the dualism of light and darkness and chaos and harmony. The
journey is never static.
Photo details: Nikon D5600 camera; Sigma 150-600 mm lens; stacked and
composed (2-200 images); post-processing - PiPP, Autostakkert3,
Registax, Lightroom, Photoshop (annotation).
* Kolkata, India Coordinates: 22.5726, 88.3639

Related EPODs

The Yin and Yang of the Lunar Cycle Mineral Moon and ISS
Transit The Noose of Mars in 2020 Comet NEOWISE in July of 2020
The Relativistic Jet of M87 Battle of the Moons
More...

Night Sky Links

* Space Weather Live
* Space Weather Live Forum
* About the Moon
* American Meteor Society
* Arbeitskreises Meteore e.V.
* Global City Lights
* Heavens Above Home Page
* The International Meteor Organization
* Lunar and Planetary Institute
* MoonConnection
* NASA Eclipse Web Page
* Understanding The Moon Phases

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 7 weeks, 5 days, 12 hours, 15 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Sunspot Active Region AR12816 in April 2021

July 30, 2021

Arturo_sunspots_image0 (1)

Arturo_sunspots_image1 (4)

Photographer: Arturo Buenrostro
Summary Author: Arturo Buenrostro; Jim Foster

The Sun has been slowly awakening from a rather prolonged period of
inactivity ( solar minimum). Shown above is a view of the Sun as
observed from my home near Dallas, Texas, on April 24, 2021 –- top
photo is a full disk view and bottom photo is a close-up. The close-up
view focuses on the sunspots and magnetic field data in regions
AR12816 and AR12818. Sunspots here are classified as Zurich
Class C -- two or more spots demonstrating bi-polarity with either
the lead spot or trailing spot having a penumbra.


* Dallas, Texas Coordinates: 32.7767, -96.7970

Related EPODs

Sunspot Active Region AR12816 in April 2021 Omega Sunset Over
Key West, Florida Annular Eclipse of June 10, 2021, Observed from
Quebec Triangular Shadow Cast on the Strait of Messina
Einstein's Eclipse, Colorized Archive - Vernal Equinox
More...

Sun Links

* NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory
* NASA Solar Eclipse Page
* NOAA Solar Calculator
* The Sun-Earth Connection: Heliophysics
* The Sunspot Cycle
* Solar System Exploration: The Sun
* The Sun Now
* This Week’s Sky

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 12 weeks, 12 hours, 15 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Lunar Corona over Death Valley

August 30, 2021

Death Valley Moon Halo copy

Photographer: Arpan Das
Summary Authors: Arpan Das; Jim Foster

This superb lunar corona was visible in Death Valley,
California, one evening earlier this summer. The colorful rings, which
add a little verve to the drab surrounds of Death Valley, could be
observed with the naked eye. Coronas may be seen whenever mid-level
clouds, composed of minute water droplets, are in the vicinity of
the Moon or Sun. Diffraction of sunlight by the droplets results in
the colored rings. Note that the gibbous Moon was slightly
overexposed here in order to draw out the pastel colored rings.
* Death Valley National Park, California Coordinates: 36.5323,
-116.9325

Related EPODs

Lunar Corona over Death Valley Auroral Dunes Observed Over
Norway Novaya Zemlya Mirage Observed from Sicily, Italy
Cumulonimbus Cloud, Rainbow and Central Bohemian Uplands Smoke
from Wildfires and the Planet Mars Archive - Ridge Line Induced
Crepuscular Rays
More...

Atmospheric Effects Links

* Atmospheric Optics
* Color and Light in Nature
* The Colors of Twillight and Sunset
* Refraction Index
* Image Gallery: Atmospheric Effects
* What is a Rainbow?

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 16 weeks, 3 days, 12 hours, 15 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)