If there was ever any apathy towards the aesthetic beauty of a jeweled sphere teaming with life and hanging effortlessly in the great open space of the universe, NASA’s latest image of our planet will cause us all to pause for reflection. The spectacular view is the most detailed, true-color image ever taken to date.
By using different satellite-based observatories, scientists were able to piece together a seamless view of each and every square kilometer of the planet. Special mention goes to NASA’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, or MODIS – a single remote sensing device which captured much of the information required for the breathtaking ‘Blue Marble’ series.
At a distance of 700 kilometers above the earth’s surface, flying onboard the Terra satellite, MODIS was able to observe detailed features of terrestrial, oceanic, and atmospheric aspects of our planet. For land and coastal areas, images were collected from June to September 2001 and composited at intervals of every eight days to compensate for sensor-blocking cloud cover.
For the ocean shots, both shallow water true-color data and global ocean color or chlorophyll data were used.
With a mosaic of observations to work with, and with improved technologies making it possible to achieve greater detail in specific ‘trouble’ areas, such as in dense tropical forests that appear dark to satellites and in making highly reflective surfaces such as salt lakes appear more realistic, NASA offers its best-ever view of Earth to Earth’s inhabitants. The new ‘Blue Marble’ series is free of charge and available to educators, scientists, museums, and yes, the public. You can download images of the entire globe, or choose to narrow in on that little dot on this jeweled planet that you call home.
