Astronaut Photography of Earth - Display Record
ISS027-E-16922
Low-resolution Browse Image
(Most browse images are not color adjusted.)Images
Conditions for Use of Images >>Image Transformation Tutorial >> Saving, Color Adjusting, and Printing Images >>
Images to View on Your Computer Now
| File Name | File Size (bytes) | Width | Height | Annotated | Cropped | Purpose | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View | ISS027-E-16922.JPG | 69132 | 640 | 437 | No | No | ||
| View | ISS027-E-16922.JPG | 204652 | 540 | 359 | Yes | Yes | NASA's Earth Observatory web site | |
| View | ISS027-E-16922.JPG | 634051 | 1000 | 664 | No | Yes | NASA's Earth Observatory web site | |
| View | ISS027-E-16922.JPG | 1462142 | 4288 | 2929 | No | No |
Request the original image file.
Download a Keyhole Markup Language (KML) file for use in Google Earth.
Electronic Image Data
Camera Files >> No sound file available.Identification
Mission: ISS027 Roll: E Frame: 16922 Mission ID on the Film or image: ISS027Country or Geographic Name: CHINA
Features: LAKE AYAKUM, RIVER DELTAS, SEDIMENTS
Center Point Latitude: 37.5 Center Point Longitude: 89.2 (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: 23Camera Focal Length: 400mm
Camera: N2: Nikon D2Xs
Film: 4288E : 4288 x 2848 pixel CMOS sensor, RGBG imager color filter.
Quality
Film Exposure:Percentage of Cloud Cover: 10 (0-10)
Nadir
Date: 20110425 (YYYYMMDD)GMT Time: 111325 (HHMMSS)Nadir Point Latitude: 38.8, Longitude: 89.3 (Negative numbers indicate south for latitude and west for longitude)
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: South
Sun Azimuth: 273 (Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point)
Spacecraft Altitude: 185 nautical miles (343 km)
Sun Elevation Angle: 17 (Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point)
Orbit Number: 3260
Captions
River Deltas, Lake Ayakum, China (Tibet)The Tibetan Plateau contains numerous lakes that dot an otherwise arid landscape. Lake Ayakum is located near the northern boundary of the Plateau to the southeast of the Kunlun Mountains. While many of the small glacier- and snowmelt-fed streams that cross the Tibetan Plateau eventually give rise to major Southeast Asian rivers including the Mekong and Yangtze, some empty into saline lakes such as Lake Ayakum.
This detailed astronaut photograph highlights two river deltas (image upper left and image lower right) formed along the southwestern shoreline of the lake. When sediments build up to the point that a river can no longer flow over them, it will jump to a new channel position and begin the process anew. Over geologic time the channels tend to sweep back and forth – similar to the motion of an automobile windshield wiper – to form the typical semi-circular or fan shape of the delta.
Gray to tan surfaces of both deltas indicate prior positions of their respective river channels; the uniform coloration and smooth texture suggest that they are relatively old and are now inactive. In contrast, the younger and currently active delta surfaces can be recognized by reddish-brown sediment and clearly visible river channels. Lateral channel migration is particularly evident in the approximately 8 km wide active delta area at image upper left. The reddish coloration of the actively depositing sediment may indicate a change from the sources that formed the older parts of the deltas (or indicate weathering and soil formation on the older deposits), or an episodic input of dust or other material to the river catchments.
Download Packaged File.
This option downloads the following items, packaged into a single file, if they are available:
- Browse image
- Large JPEG
- Cataloged information with captions
- Camera file
- Sound file
