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Astronaut Photography of Earth - Display Record

ISS005-E-16729

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	File Name	File Size (bytes)	Width	Height	Annotated	Cropped	Purpose	Comments
View	ISS005-E-16729.JPG	54904	540	362		Yes	NASA's Earth Observatory web site
View	ISS005-E-16729.JPG	79231	639	435	No	No
View	ISS005-E-16729.JPG	199868	1000	681	No	Yes	NASA's Earth Observatory web site	Color adjusted

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	File Name	File Size (bytes)	Width	Height	Annotated	Cropped	Purpose	Comments
Request	ISS005-E-16729.JPG	199868	1000	681		Yes	NASA's Earth Observatory web site
Request	ISS005-E-16729.JPG	1373902	3032	2064	No	No

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Identification

Mission: ISS005 Roll: E Frame: 16729 Mission ID on the Film or image: ISS005
Country or Geographic Name: USA-UTAH
Features: SALT PANS, GREAT SALT LAKE
Center Point Latitude: 41.0 Center Point Longitude: -112.5 (Negative numbers indicate south for latitude and west for longitude)
Stereo: (Yes indicates there is an adjacent picture of the same area)
ONC Map ID: JNC Map ID:

Camera

Camera Tilt: High Oblique
Camera Focal Length: 800mm
Camera: E4: Kodak DCS760C Electronic Still Camera
Film: 3060E : 3060 x 2036 pixel CCD, RGBG array.

Quality

Film Exposure:
Percentage of Cloud Cover: 10 (0-10)

Nadir

Date: 20021007 (YYYYMMDD)GMT Time: 230520 (HHMMSS)
Nadir Point Latitude: 38.6, Longitude: -117.1 (Negative numbers indicate south for latitude and west for longitude)
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: Northeast
Sun Azimuth: 240 (Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point)
Spacecraft Altitude: 202 nautical miles (374 km)
Sun Elevation Angle: 25 (Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point)
Orbit Number: 2166

Captions

Effect of Drought on Great Salt Lake:
Great Salt Lake serves as a striking visual marker for astronauts orbiting over North America. A sharp line across its center is caused by the restriction in water flow from the railroad causeway. The eye-catching colors of the lake stem from the fact that Great Salt Lake is hypersaline, typically 3-5 times saltier than the ocean, and the high salinities support sets of plants and animals that affect the light-absorbing qualities of the water. North of the causeway salinities are higher, and the water turns red from the pigments of halophilic bacteria. In the shallower corners of the lake, earthen dikes mark large salt evaporation works, which take on the jewel tones of turquoise, russet, amber, and pearl white.

This detailed image shows some of the salt works operated by Great Salt Lake Minerals and Chemicals Corporation near West Warren, Utah, on the eastern shore of the lake. Evaporative salt harvesting at Great Salt Lake is an important source of minerals for industrial uses. The lake contains an estimated 5 billion tons of salt, with 2.5 million additional tons washing in each year. Extraction rates are slightly higher than the amount added to the lake each year. In addition to sodium chloride, the ponds near West Warren are used to extract potassium sulfate and magnesium chloride, which are used to make fertilizers.

Space Station astronauts have recorded the decline in lake levels in response to a regional 5-year drought taking both detailed views and broad views of the entire lake (ISS007-E-13002 and ISS002-707-87). As lake levels have declined the salt works have become islands in the middle of a dry lakebed. Seasonal fluctuations in Great Salt Lake produce annual lows every fall, but there are significant longer-term fluctuations in lake levels relating to the climate. Great Salt Lake hit a 22-year low at 4,198 feet in the fall of 2002, and a near-record low again in October 2003. The lowest level ever recorded was 4,191 feet in 1963, and the highest levels were 4,212 feet in June 1986 and April 1987. Experimental scientific forecasts predict that lake levels will begin gradually increasing again, but the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook indicates only limited improvement from this snow season because the water deficits are so high.

Around the world, lake levels are an excellent indicator of local climate. Repeat observations over time allow comparisons and levels rise and fall in response to droughts and the broader climate patterns that are linked to droughts.

Less-detailed images of the decline in the Great Salt Lake as seen from Terra satellite’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor were previously shown on Earth Observatory. MODIS has also documented dust storms related to the drought.

Space Station images of Salt Lake City were also previously featured on Earth Observatory.

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