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 - Bonneville Salt Flats Panorama

August 14, 2021

6a0105371bb32c970b015393c1cce4970b Every weekend we present a
notable item from our archives. This EPOD was originally published
December 7, 2011.

Photographer: Bret Webster
Summary Authors: Bret Webster; Jim Foster
The panorama above shows a view of the Bonneville Salt Flats and
surrounding mountain ranges in northwestern Utah. Steady winds have
ruffled Bonneville’s surface forming the conspicuous windrow. A
combination of wind and water created these salt flats. When rain
falls here, during the cold season, it accumulates in a very thin layer
since the surface is so level it has nowhere to drain. As the weather
warms, the shallow lake water slowly evaporates, adding a new layer
of salt, chiefly potassium, magnesium or sodium chloride.
Note that it's likely that the new salt is really a combination of old,
recrystallized salt, as well as some new additional salts that
drain into the lake from the surrounding hills. Panorama taken on July
10, 2010.

Photo Details: Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II; Focal Length: 15.0mm;
Aperture: f/16.0; Exposure Time: 0.0040 s (1/250); ISO equiv: 40;
Software: DXO Optics Pro v6.
* Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah Coordinates: 40.79972, -113.8

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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 14 weeks, 1 day, 12 hours, 15 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)

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.


Flower Supermoon Over Rome

September 14, 2021

CS1A0017s

Photographer: Gianluca Masi

Summary Author: Gianluca Masi; Cadan Cummings

The spectacular photo above shows the Flower Supermoon rising
in Rome, Italy soon after sunset. These lovely lighting conditions are
due to the typical blue hour after sunset when the remaining
indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue hue. Primarily,
this bluish, cooler light is caused by light scattering and
Chappuis absorption of visible light by ozone in Earth’s
atmosphere.

In contrast to the blue hour lighting, the full Moon has a more
reddish and warmer hue resulting from being very low to the horizon and
its light having to cross a thick layer of atmosphere. Nicknamed the
“Flower” Moon, the May full Moon is named after the many flowers that
bloom during the month. Adding significance to this full Moon, it was
the second of two consecutive supermoons of the year when the Moon
is at its closest point in its elliptical orbit to Earth (approximately
226,000 miles or 363,300 km away). In the foreground, you can also see
the Mausoleum of Hadrian (aka Castel Sant’Angelo), the Altar
of the Fatherland, the Colosseum, the Pantheon’s dome, and
countless other residences and buildings of Rome’s skyline. Photo taken
on May 26, 2021.
* Rome, Italy Coordinates: 41.9028, 12.4964

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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 1 week, 4 days, 21 hours, 55 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)

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.


Storm, Stars and Mt Etna

October 14, 2021

Giovanni_tEMPORALE STACK 4 2048 PIX

Photographer: Giovanni Tumino

Summary Author: Giovanni Tumino; Jim Foster

The photo above shows a summer thunderstorm illuminating a portion
of the flank of Mt. Etna, in Sicily, Italy, as city lights light up
the night sky in the vicinity of Etna’s base. This stratovolcano
(11,014 ft or 3,357 m), one of the most active on the planet, isn’t
contributing to the glow of the sky here as it’s been relatively
quiet since this past February. Note that stars are shining
brightly above the top of the storm. Photo taken on July 18, 2021, from
Ragusa, Italy.

Photo details: Canon EOS RA; SIGMA 85 mm lens; f/1.4; f/4; four 15
seconds exposures; ISO1600; combined in Photoshop
* Ragusa (Sicily), Italy Coordinates: 36.9269, 14.7255

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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 5 weeks, 6 days, 21 hours, 55 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)

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.


Belt Meteor Crater - Actually A Sinkhole

December 14, 2021

EPODcrater

Photographer: Rod Benson

Summary Author: Rod Benson

This photo features the Belt Meteor Crater, which is located on
private land in central Montana. Contrary to its name, this landform
was NOT made by a meteorite slamming into the prairie. Instead,
this landform is a sinkhole that was caused by the dissolution
of limestone beneath the surface. The rim of the crater is made of
sandstone, but a thick (up to 1,700 feet / 520 m) formation called
the Madison limestone underlies the area. As water soaks down
through soils above, it becomes slightly acidic. While this water
works its way down through cracks, it dissolves away the limestone and
forms caves. The sinkhole is 100 feet (30 m) across and 40 feet (12
m) deep, so a fairly large cave must have formed in the limestone here
not far beneath the surface. Eventually the layers of sandstone above
the cave collapsed onto the cavern floor to form the sinkhole.

The Belt Meteor Crater once served as a buffalo jump, or "pishkun",
for Native Americans as evidenced by bison bones and arrowheads on
the floor of the hole. "Pishkun" is a word from the Blackfeet
meaning "deep blood kettle." Scientists visited the sinkhole to collect
bison bones that can be carbon-dated to determine when Native
Americans used it. They also found an arrowhead(s) made of
obsidian. Experts can determine where the obsidian came from by
comparing its mineral composition with obsidian outcrops in the region.
This can also help provide insights about Native American trade routes.
* Belt, Montana Coordinates: 47.3872, -110.9277

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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 1 week, 2 days, 20 hours, 43 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)