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.


Punta Bianca Rock Outcropping

March 08, 2022

DSC_9876

Photographer: Salvatore Cerruto

Summary Author: Giovanni Floridia

Traveling along the Sicilian coast- a few kilometers southeast of
Agrigento- visitors can admire the Trubi rock outcroppings. These
unique and beautiful rocks are named after the term “Trubi” that in the
Sicilian dialect indicates a land of whitish color. This specific
landform has been given the name Punta Bianca. Intrinsically linked
to the surrounding Mediterranean basin, the sea deposits layers of
different mineral composition and morphology. These deposited layers
represent part of a succession of an ancient open sea floor, exhumed by
tectonic forces and eroded by the action of the wind. From their
geologic history, important scientific information useful for
paleogeographic and paleoclimatic reconstruction is recorded in
these landforms.

History locked away in this landform goes back approximately five
million years when a partial drying of the Mediterranean basin
occurred, known as the “ Messinian salinity crisis”. During this
portion of geologic history, conditions were ideal for small
calcareous shell microorganisms called Planktonic Foraminifera.
The deposition of these calcareous shells combined with the underlying
geology to produce limestone and marl banks. Visitors to the
area can now admire the beauty of these white rocks as they overlook
the Mediterranean Sea. In addition to being a beautiful lookout
point, the Punta Bianca also serves as protection from the strong
Sicilian Channel currents. Photo taken June 21, 2020.

Photo details: Nikon D800, Nikon 14-24, f/2.8 @20mm, f/10, ISO-200,
1/30 sec.
* Agrigento, Italy Coordinates: 37.194,13.661


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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
* MyShake - University of California, Berkeley
* 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, 1 day, 20 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.


Eiffel Tower Shadow

April 08, 2022

6M2A4846p

Photographer: Bertrand Kulik

Summary Author: Bertrand Kulik

A few minutes before sunset one day this past winter, I took the above
photo from Paris, France, near the Alma Bridge. The Sun was exactly
behind the Eiffel Tower. Because there was considerable dust in
the air, as well as other aerosols, the shadow of the tower can
be seen projected onto a layer of dust in the sky. Photo taken in
mid-January 2022.

Photo details :
Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera; EF50 mm; f/1.8; 50.0 mm; 1/4000 exposure;
ISO 800
* Paris, France Coordinates: 48.8566, 2.3522

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Atmospheric Effects Links

* Atmospheric Optics
* Optic Picture of Day: Gruppo Astrofili Galileo Galilei
* 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 5 weeks, 4 days, 21 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.


Two Views of the Wondrous Andromeda Galaxy

October 07, 2022

GregP_Combine_Sky90_Hyperstar_200mm_EPOD_2

GregP_M31_85subs_3mins_EPOD

Photographer: Greg Parker

Summary Authors: Greg Parker; Jim Foster

The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is considered the most distant
object that we can detect with the unaided eye. If you live in the
Northern Hemisphere and have never seen a galaxy, other than our
Milky Way, you owe it to yourself to venture into the countryside
on a clear, moonless autumn evening and look to the northeast. Between
the stars is the asterism of the Square of Pegasus and the
constellation of Perseus, a very faint glow will appear in the
constellation of Andromeda. You may need to use averted vision
to see it. If you still can’t spot it, grab a pair of binoculars.

Of course, don’t expect to see anything that resembles the remarkable
images above, captured from the New Forest Observatory.
Nevertheless, just being able to discern this distant smudge (some
2.5 million light years away) is thrilling. The light we see when we
gaze at M31 began its path to our eyes about the time that North
America and South America were linked by the Isthmus of Panama and
around the time our ancestors were starting to stand upright. We can
see it with the naked eye not only because it’s relatively close by
(one of the Milky Way's nearest galactic neighbors), but because it’s
huge -– 220,000 light years across, holding perhaps a trillion stars.

Photo details:

Top "zoomed out view" - Canon 200 mm prime lens; ASI 2600MC Pro colour
CMOS camera.

Bottom: “zoomed in view” - Hyperstar 4 (on a Celestron C11 telescope)
image; ASI 2600MC Pro colour CMOS camera.

New Forest Observatory, U.K. Coordinates: 50.819444, -1.59


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

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 31 weeks, 5 days, 21 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.


Golden Torch Cactus Flower

December 08, 2022


DaleHugo_cactusflower

Photographer: Linda Marcy
Summary Author: Dale Hugo

Shown above is a Golden Torch cactus flower ( Echinopsis spachiana).
It was found blooming in the photographer’s yard in Gilbert, Arizona.
Like most cacti, they bloom at night and only for a short time. Usually
after dusk the blossoms appear for fertilization by nighttime
pollinators that are attracted by the wonderful fragrances of cacti
flowers. A number of desert pollinators apparently avoid the heat of
day, and thus the night blooming tendency of many cacti.

These flowers last only through the morning, flowering for only 10
hours or so. But their beauty makes up for the short-lived blooms. This
one faded out before noon. Sic Transit Gloria.

The Golden Torch is sometimes planted in rock gardens in the U.S.
Southwest and elsewhere. They attain heights of about 6 ft (2 m) and
grow in clumps as you can see here. Sometimes the entire head of the
cactus will be covered with several flowers at once. The spines are
nearly an inch (2 cm) long and worthy of your respect. Don’t back up in
an Arizona garden! Be careful not to over-water your cactus plants, but
they do appreciate sporadic watering during long dry spells. Photo
taken in early July 2022.

Gilbert, Arizona Coordinates: 33.3528, -111.7890


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Plant Links

* Discover Life
* Tree Encyclopedia
* What are Phytoplankton?
* Encyclopedia of Life - What is a Plant?
* USDA Plants Database
* University of Texas Native Plant Database
* Plants in Motion
* What Tree is It?

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

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 40 weeks, 3 days, 21 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)