Tinakula is a small, volcanic island in the South Pacific, located about 2,300 kilometers (1,400 miles) northeast of Brisbane, Australia. This natural-color satellite image (top) shows a plume of volcanic gas, possibly mixed with a bit of ash, rising above the island’s summit. (via NASA Earth Observatory)
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Tinakula is a small, volcanic island in the South Pacific, located about 2,300 kilometers (1,400 miles) northeast of Brisbane, Australia. This natural-color satellite image (top) shows a plume of volcanic gas, possibly mixed with a bit of ash, rising above the island’s summit. (via NASA Earth Observatory)

Fuente: earthobservatory.nasa.gov

The Hawaiian Islands were formed as the Pacific Plate moved westward over a geologic hot spot. The most populous Hawaiian Island, Oahu, is dominated by two large shield volcanoes that range in age from two to four million years old. However, a fair number of smaller and much younger volcanic craters are also present on Oahu, such as Diamond Head Crater pictured above. These younger eruptions were also much smaller in lava output, and much more explosive in nature than the older shield lavas. The younger volcanic craters are all less than 500,000 years old. They formed after Oahu had moved well off the hot spot and the main shield volcanoes had gone dormant for at least two million years. For example, Oahu is now over 200 mi (320 km) from the still-active Kilauea, on the Big Island, consistent with the modern rate of plate motion of four inches (about 10 cm) a year. What caused these younger eruptions of the Honolulu Volcanic Series so long after the island had moved off the hot spot, their precise ages of eruption, and whether they will erupt again, are current points of research and debate among geoscientists. Photo taken on June 12, 2008. Credit: Charles W. Carrigan. (via EPOD)
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The Hawaiian Islands were formed as the Pacific Plate moved westward over a geologic hot spot. The most populous Hawaiian Island, Oahu, is dominated by two large shield volcanoes that range in age from two to four million years old. However, a fair number of smaller and much younger volcanic craters are also present on Oahu, such as Diamond Head Crater pictured above. These younger eruptions were also much smaller in lava output, and much more explosive in nature than the older shield lavas. The younger volcanic craters are all less than 500,000 years old. They formed after Oahu had moved well off the hot spot and the main shield volcanoes had gone dormant for at least two million years. For example, Oahu is now over 200 mi (320 km) from the still-active Kilauea, on the Big Island, consistent with the modern rate of plate motion of four inches (about 10 cm) a year. What caused these younger eruptions of the Honolulu Volcanic Series so long after the island had moved off the hot spot, their precise ages of eruption, and whether they will erupt again, are current points of research and debate among geoscientists. Photo taken on June 12, 2008. Credit: Charles W. Carrigan. (via EPOD)

Fuente: epod.usra.edu

Columnar basalt along the edge of the Bras de la Plaine River on the island of Reunion. More basalt is in the Earth’s crust than any other rock and oceanic hotspots, such as Reunion, are primary locations for basalt to occur. The Bras de la Plaine runs through the basalt plateau between the two volcanoes that form the oval-shaped island. The western volcano, Piton des Neiges (“Snow Peak”), has been dormant for 12,000 years. The eastern end of the island is dominated by the shield volcano Piton de la Fournaise (“Furnace Peak”), one of the most active volcanoes on Earth. More than 40% of the island is part of the Reunion National Park and is on UNESCO’s World Heritage List of significant places. Photo taken July 14, 2011. Credit: Vincent Dunogue, Stu Witmer. (via EPOD)
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Columnar basalt along the edge of the Bras de la Plaine River on the island of Reunion. More basalt is in the Earth’s crust than any other rock and oceanic hotspots, such as Reunion, are primary locations for basalt to occur. The Bras de la Plaine runs through the basalt plateau between the two volcanoes that form the oval-shaped island. The western volcano, Piton des Neiges (“Snow Peak”), has been dormant for 12,000 years. The eastern end of the island is dominated by the shield volcano Piton de la Fournaise (“Furnace Peak”), one of the most active volcanoes on Earth. More than 40% of the island is part of the Reunion National Park and is on UNESCO’s World Heritage List of significant places. Photo taken July 14, 2011. Credit: Vincent Dunogue, Stu Witmer. (via EPOD)

Fuente: epod.usra.edu

Earth from Space: Volcanic land (by europeanspaceagency) This Envisat image shows the eastern coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula, in Russia’s far east between the Pacific Ocean and Sea of Okhotsk. The central element shows an isolated volcanic group that includes the highest active volcano in Eurasia: Klyuchevskaya Sopka. This image is a compilation of three passes by Envisat’s radar on 1 June, 6 July and 10 August 2010. Each is assigned a colour (red, green and blue) and combined to produce this representation. New colours reveal changes in the surface between Envisat’s passes. Credit: ESA.
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Earth from Space: Volcanic land (by europeanspaceagency)

This Envisat image shows the eastern coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula, in Russia’s far east between the Pacific Ocean and Sea of Okhotsk. The central element shows an isolated volcanic group that includes the highest active volcano in Eurasia: Klyuchevskaya Sopka. This image is a compilation of three passes by Envisat’s radar on 1 June, 6 July and 10 August 2010. Each is assigned a colour (red, green and blue) and combined to produce this representation. New colours reveal changes in the surface between Envisat’s passes. Credit: ESA.

Fuente: Flickr / europeanspaceagency

This natural-color satellite image was acquired by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard Earth Observing-1 (EO-1). Dark gray areas of Anak Krakatau are composed principally of lava flows deposited in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s. These flows are topped by a young cinder cone near the center of the island. Green vegetation covers older lavas along the eastern coastline. (via NASA Earth Observatory)
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This natural-color satellite image was acquired by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard Earth Observing-1 (EO-1). Dark gray areas of Anak Krakatau are composed principally of lava flows deposited in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s. These flows are topped by a young cinder cone near the center of the island. Green vegetation covers older lavas along the eastern coastline. (via NASA Earth Observatory)

Fuente: earthobservatory.nasa.gov

Teaser: “The Island” - La Palma Time Lapse Video (por Christoph Malin)

Imagine the world’s largest volcanic erosion crater. Then imagine an island with an incredible area to height ratio: low area of 708 square km and the 12 km wide “caldera de taburiente” with it’s 2445 m high roque de los muchachos peak… or the near 2000 m high Deseada volcanic twin peaks on the ruta de los Volcanes… Combine that with beautiful starry skies - and you have La Palma.

Fuente: vimeo.com

Surrounded by the warm waters of the South Pacific, the Fiji Islands are often cloaked in clouds when the Aqua or Terra satellites fly over. But July 21, 2011, offered up a perfectly cloud-free view. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on Aqua shows Fiji’s second-largest island, Vanua Levu, and the Cakaulevu Reef that shelters the island’s northern shore. (via NASA Earth Observatory)
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Surrounded by the warm waters of the South Pacific, the Fiji Islands are often cloaked in clouds when the Aqua or Terra satellites fly over. But July 21, 2011, offered up a perfectly cloud-free view. This image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on Aqua shows Fiji’s second-largest island, Vanua Levu, and the Cakaulevu Reef that shelters the island’s northern shore. (via NASA Earth Observatory)

Fuente: earthobservatory.nasa.gov

Earth from Space: Island swirls (by europeanspaceagency) This Envisat image, acquired on 15 June 2011, shows the volcanic island of Guadalupe peeking through the clouds. The island lies in the Pacific Ocean around 250 km off the west coast of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula. The swirling clouds to the south of the island are the result of a meteorological phenomenon known as a ‘von Karman vortex’. As wind-driven clouds encounter Guadalupe, they flow around the high volcanic outcrop to form the large spinning eddies that can clearly be seen in the image. Credit: ESA.
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Earth from Space: Island swirls (by europeanspaceagency)

This Envisat image, acquired on 15 June 2011, shows the volcanic island of Guadalupe peeking through the clouds. The island lies in the Pacific Ocean around 250 km off the west coast of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula. The swirling clouds to the south of the island are the result of a meteorological phenomenon known as a ‘von Karman vortex’. As wind-driven clouds encounter Guadalupe, they flow around the high volcanic outcrop to form the large spinning eddies that can clearly be seen in the image. Credit: ESA.

Fuente: Flickr / europeanspaceagency

Earth from Space: Jewel of the Persian Gulf (by europeanspaceagency) This Envisat image features the largest island in the Persian Gulf: Iran’s Qeshm Island. This long thin island lies just a few kilometres off the Iranian coast near the narrow Strait of Hormuz, which separates the Persian Gulf to the west and the Gulf of Oman to the southeast. Qeshm Island harbours the Hara Biosphere Reserve, the largest stretch of mangrove forest along the Persian Gulf shoreline. This network of shallow waterways and forest can be seen clearly in the image, between Qeshm Island and the mainland. The image was created by combining three Envisat radar images from 2009 (7 May, 29 October and 3 December) over the same area. The colours result from changes in the surface between acquisitions. Credits: ESA.
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Earth from Space: Jewel of the Persian Gulf (by europeanspaceagency)

This Envisat image features the largest island in the Persian Gulf: Iran’s Qeshm Island. This long thin island lies just a few kilometres off the Iranian coast near the narrow Strait of Hormuz, which separates the Persian Gulf to the west and the Gulf of Oman to the southeast. Qeshm Island harbours the Hara Biosphere Reserve, the largest stretch of mangrove forest along the Persian Gulf shoreline. This network of shallow waterways and forest can be seen clearly in the image, between Qeshm Island and the mainland. The image was created by combining three Envisat radar images from 2009 (7 May, 29 October and 3 December) over the same area. The colours result from changes in the surface between acquisitions. Credits: ESA.

Fuente: Flickr / europeanspaceagency

They are narrow strips of sand, often spits or sandbars that grew into full-blown, vegetated islands. They stretch from a few hundred meters to several kilometers wide. They run parallel to the coast, facing the sea and bearing the brunt of waves and wind, while protecting the lagoons and bays and coastal wetlands behind them. And they move almost constantly, shaped and re-shaped by currents, tides, winds, and man. Barrier islands are found along the edge of every continent except Antarctica, and in 2011 scientists and naturalists are still finding new ones. (…) The Thematic Mapper on the Landsat 5 satellite captured this 2006 image of previously unrecognized barrier islands along the northeast coast of Brazil, midway between the mouth of the Amazon River and the coastal city of São Luís. (via Barrier Islands off Brazil : Image of the Day)
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They are narrow strips of sand, often spits or sandbars that grew into full-blown, vegetated islands. They stretch from a few hundred meters to several kilometers wide. They run parallel to the coast, facing the sea and bearing the brunt of waves and wind, while protecting the lagoons and bays and coastal wetlands behind them. And they move almost constantly, shaped and re-shaped by currents, tides, winds, and man. Barrier islands are found along the edge of every continent except Antarctica, and in 2011 scientists and naturalists are still finding new ones. (…) The Thematic Mapper on the Landsat 5 satellite captured this 2006 image of previously unrecognized barrier islands along the northeast coast of Brazil, midway between the mouth of the Amazon River and the coastal city of São Luís. (via Barrier Islands off Brazil : Image of the Day)

Fuente: earthobservatory.nasa.gov

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