View allAll Photos Tagged Copernicus
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Cook Strait, which separates New Zealand's North and South Islands.
Named after James Cook, who was the first European to sail through it, the Cook Strait is just 23 km wide at its narrowest point, so on a clear day it is possible to see across the strait. However, it is also renowned as one of the roughest and most unpredictable stretches of water in the world, owing to strong winds, conflicting currents and variable tides.
This dynamic environment is depicted here by the various shades of blue in the water and swirls. Both shores feature steep cliffs which, in the image, result in the white colour caused by the big waves crashing against the rocky coast.
New Zealand comprises many islands, though the North and South Islands are the largest. North Island, visible on the right, is home to Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city, which lies on the hills and shore around the bay in the extreme south of the island.
South Island is connected to North Island by a ferry service from Wellington to Picton, a port town near the head of Queen Charlotte Sound. The sound is a deep inlet visible in dark blue in the upper part of South Island. Numerous ferries can be spotted as white dots in the sound.
Moving south, a patchwork of agricultural fields cover the Wairau Plain and surround the town of Blenheim, visible in grey.
Several rivers cross the plain. The biggest in the image, the Wairau River, is one of the longest in New Zealand. It can be seen meandering through the fields and splitting into separate arms which eventually enter Cloudy Bay in Cook Strait. The southernmost arm of the river forms an estuary, which feeds a network of ponds, marshes and lagoons, sheltered from the Pacific Ocean by an 8-km-long boulder bank.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2021), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over a set of small towns in the Colli Albani hills known collectively as Castelli Romani.
Located around 20 km southeast of Rome, the Castelli Romani area is of volcanic nature, originating from the collapsing of the Latium volcano hundreds of thousands of years ago. The outlines of the inner and outer crater rims are clearly visible in the image.
Two lakes now occupy the craters, the small Lake Nemi and the larger, oval-shaped Lake Albano. The town of Castel Gandolfo overlooks Lake Albano and is known for its papal summer residence where many popes have spent their summers since the 17th century.
Owing to cooler temperatures during summer, the hills and small towns are a popular destination for city dwellers trying to escape the heat.
Each town has its own attraction, for example Ariccia is famous for its porchetta or roast pork, and Frascati is predominantly known for its wine.
Frascati, which is just north of Lake Albano, is known for a number of scientific research institutes. These include ENEA, the Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development; CNR, the Italian Research Council; INFN, the National Institute for Nuclear Physics; as well as ESA’s Earth observation centre.
From 9–13 September, ESA is holding the Φ-week event, focusing on Earth observation and FutureEO — to review the latest developments in Open Science trends. The week will include a variety of inspiring talks, workshops on how Earth observation can benefit from the latest digital technologies and help shape future missions.
Watch the Φ-week opening session live on Monday 9 September, starting at 11:30 GMT (13:30 CEST).
This image, acquired on 13 October 2018, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2018), processed by ESA,CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
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Nicolaus Copernicus (German: Nikolaus Kopernikus; Italian: Nicolò Copernico; Polish: Mikołaj Kopernik (19 February 1473 - 24 May 1543) was a Renaissance astronomer and the first person to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric cosmology which displaced the Earth from the center of the universe.
Copernicus was born in Thorn (now Torun) in Poland and this statue can be found in that city.
The inscription of the statue says: "Nicolaus Copernicus Thorunensis, terrae motor, solis caelique stator" ("Nicolaus Copernicus of Thorun, mover of the earth, stopper of the sun and heavens")
Submitted 23/05/2014
Accepted 20/06/2014
Published:
- Amar Chitra Katha Private Limi (India) 13-Feb-2016
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Vatnajökull ice cap, in southeast Iceland, in this summery image captured on 6 July 2019.
Zoom in to see this image at its full 10 m resolution.
Covering an area of around 8400 sq km, which is three times the size of Luxembourg, Vatnajökull is not only classified as the biggest glacier in Iceland, but the biggest in Europe. With an average ice thickness of around 900 m, the ice cap has about 30 outlet glaciers – many of which are retreating owing to warming temperatures.
The most prominent outlet glaciers of Vatnajökull include Dyngjujökull in the north, Breiðamerkurjökull, and Skeiðarárjökull to the south. Vatnajökull conceals some of the most active volcanoes in the country, of which Bárðarbunga is the largest and Grímsvötn the most active. Periodic eruptions of these volcanoes melt the surrounding ice and create large pockets of water, which can often burst the weakened ice causing glacial floods, or ‘jökulhlaup’ in Icelandic.
During these jökulhlaups, the glacier’s meltwater carries sediments and sands composed of ash to the coast. These outwash plains are called ‘sandurs’ and are commonly found in Iceland. Skeiðarársandur, the large area of black sand, visible south of the Skeiðarárjökull outlet glacier, covers an area of around 1300 sq km and was formed as the glacial rivers in the area washed ash and ice towards the sea.
In the bottom-right of the image, on the southern side of Vatnajökull, the Jökulsárlón glacial lake, dotted with icebergs, is visible. Jökulsárlón began to form when the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier began retreating from the Atlantic Ocean owing to rising temperatures.
The lake has grown considerably over time because of the melting of the glacier. It now covers an area of around 18 sq km, and with a maximum depth of around 250 m, it is considered Iceland’s deepest lake. The lake connects with the ocean and is, therefore, composed of both seawater and freshwater – causing its unique colour.
Copernicus Sentinel-2 is a two-satellite mission. Each satellite carries a high-resolution camera that images Earth’s surface in 13 spectral bands. Together they cover all Earth’s land surfaces, large islands, inland and coastal waters every five days at the equator.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over part of the Yukon Delta in the US state of Alaska.
Click on the box in the lower-right corner to view this image at its full 10 m resolution directly in your browser.
The Yukon River rises in British Columbia in Canada and flows through Yukon Territory before entering Alaska and finally draining into the Bering Sea. This image, recorded on 29 August 2017, shows how the river branches off into numerous channels that meander through the low-lying terrain on their way to the sea. The sandy colour of these channels and of the coastal water illustrates how much sediment the river carries to the sea at this time of year.
It is estimated that 95% of all sediment transported during an average year occurs between May and September. During the other seven months, concentrations of sediment and other water-quality constituents are low. However, scientists also believe that sediment flow has increased over the last few decades because permafrost is thawing in the Yukon River Basin and ice breakup occurs earlier in the year owing to warmer air temperatures. This is important because elevated concentrations can adversely affect aquatic life by obstructing fish gills, covering fish spawning sites, and altering habitat of bottom-dwelling organisms. Metals and organic contaminants also tend to absorb onto fine-grained sediment.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites each carry a high-resolution camera that images Earth’s surface in 13 spectral bands. While the mission is mostly used to track changes in the way land is being used and to monitor the health of our vegetation, it also provides information on the condition of coastal waters.
This image is featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Crater Copernicus on 22nd November 2015
Celestron Edge HD 11
ASI120MM Camera
Processed in AS!2, Registax6, PS CS6
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Zeeland – the westernmost province in the Netherlands.
Located around 150 km from Amsterdam, Zeeland consists of a complex system of islands, peninsulas and waterways. It also comprises Zeeuwsch-Vlaanderen – a strip of the Flanders mainland between the Western Scheldt (Westerschelde) and Belgium.
The province of Zeeland lies on the large river delta at the mouth of several rivers, like the Scheldt (Schelde) and Meuse (Maas) rivers. The lighter aqua colours in the image depict the shallow waters of the delta with riverbeds and several sandbanks visible. The brown coloured waters indicate a higher sediment content, which contrasts with the darker waters of the North Sea.
The Port of Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe, is visible top-right in the image. Antwerp, in Belgium, is visible in the bottom-right and the quaint city of Bruges can be seen in the bottom-left of the image.
Zeeland is one of the main agricultural provinces in the Netherlands with one of the largest areas of arable farmland. The patchwork of agricultural fields visible on the islands and mainland show the fields in the various stages of growth or harvest. The area supports cereals, potatoes, beets, cattle and horticulture.
Large parts of Zeeland, which translates to ‘sea land,’ lie below sea level. The province was the site of a deadly flood in 1953 brought on by a combination of high spring tides and a strong windstorm that severely damaged the low-lying coastal region.
As a result, the Dutch government began to implement the Delta Project – an elaborate system of dykes, canals, dams and bridges to hold back the North Sea. In this image, the 9km-long Eastern Scheldt Storm Surge Barrier (Oosterscheldekering) is visible between the islands of Schouwen-Duiveland and Noord-Beveland.
Since sea-level rise is a key indicator of climate change, accurately monitoring the changing height of the sea surface over decades is essential for climate science, for policy-making and, ultimately, for protecting the lives of those in low-lying regions at risk.
The Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite, set to launch in November, is the first of two identical satellites to be launched sequentially to provide accurate measurements of sea level change.
Both satellites will reach 66°N and 66°S – a specific orbit occupied by the earlier missions that supplied the reference sea-surface height data over the last three decades. This orbit will allow for 95% of Earth’s ice-free ocean to be mapped every 10 days.
This image, acquired on 30 May 2020, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2020), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
This image looks better than the one produced in AutoStakkert. This was aligned and stacked in Registax, which I have more experience with. Seems less "digital" and smoother.
Equipo Principal: ZWO ASI 178mc + SW Explorer 250pds + EQ6-R-Pro + ZWO EAF + Barlow Celestron X-Cel LX 3X
10% of 20.000 frames selected in PIPP and stacked in Registax6
scale: 4 pix/km
SharpCap 3.2, PIPP, Registax6, Pixinsight 1.8.8, PS
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over part of Sindh – the third-largest province of Pakistan.
Sindh stretches around 580 km from north to south in southern Pakistan, covering an area of around 141 000 sq km. It is bounded by the Thar Desert to the east, the Kirthar mountains to the west and the Arabian Sea to the south. In the centre of the province is a fertile plain around the Indus River.
Agricultural fields dominate this weeks’ Earth from Space image, creating a colourful patchwork of geometric shapes. Agriculture is key to Sindh’s economy with cotton, wheat, rice, sugarcane and maize being the major crops produced in the province. Livestock raising is also important, with cattle, buffalo, sheep and goats being the main animals kept.
The colourful image was created by combining three separate images from the near-infrared channel from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.
The first image, captured on 15 October 2021, is assigned to the red channel; the second from 24 November 2021, represents green, and the third from 13 January 2022 covers the blue part of the spectrum. All other colours visible in the image are different mixtures of red, green and blue, and vary according to the stage of vegetation growth over the four-month period.
The city of Badin is visible in the centre-right of the image and is often referred to as ‘Sugar State’ owing to its production of sugar. Small lakes, artificial water bodies and some flooded fields can be spotted in dark blue and black in the image.
Thanks to their unique perspective from space, Earth observing satellites are key in mapping and monitoring croplands. The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission is specifically designed to provide images that can be used to distinguish between crop types as well as data on numerous plant indices, such as leaf area index, leaf chlorophyll content and leaf water content – all of which are essential to accurately monitor plant growth.
The image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2021-22), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
QHY5III715C First light : Copernicus Crater.
C6 XLT & Baader UV/IR Cut.
I have to get used to the colour balance of this camera, the img came out a bit green looking, so converted to monochrome.
Shown here on the last quarter moon, the craters Copernicus and Eratosthenes (left and right, respectively).
This photo is best seen at full size (1920 x 1024) or in the Flickr Lightbox.
Image capture done with a Celestron C9.25 Edge HD, an Astro-Physics 2X barlow, and a Sony NEX-5R digital camera (manually selected, best 39 images out of a series of 84 still captures, ISO 200, 1/15 second at an effective focal length of 5170mm).
Image processing done in AutoStakkert! 2 (stacking), PixInsight (sharpening), Photoshop CS5, and Apple’s Preview application.
All rights reserved.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Warsaw – the capital and largest city of Poland.
Located in east-central Poland, Warsaw lies in the heartland of the Masovian Plain, around 280 km from the Baltic coastal city of Gdańsk. The city saw more than 85% of its buildings destroyed during World War II, yet, despite its hardships, Warsaw has risen from the ashes – earning itself the nickname ‘Phoenix City.’
Warsaw straddles the Vistula (Wisla) River, the largest river in Poland. With a length of around 1000 km and a drainage basin of some 195 000 sq km, the Vistula is an important waterway to the nations of Eastern Europe.
The agricultural fields surrounding Warsaw, visible in the left of the image, are very distinctive with their small and highly fragmented shape. These unique agricultural structures are most likely due to the fact that many farms are private, with most fields covering a relatively small area (around 9 hectares on average).
Divided into right and left bank portions by the river, Warsaw extends around 30 km from north to south and around 25 km from east to west. On the west bank of the river, lies Warsaw’s historical Old Town (Stare Miasto) which holds the most prominent tourist attractions and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980.
East of the Vistula lies the Narodowy National Stadium, a retractable-roof stadium used for professional football, concerts and was used as the location of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP-19) in November 2013.
Warsaw is also home to a prominent statue dedicated to the mathematician and astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, which stands near the Polish Academy of Sciences. Copernicus was an important figure to humanity’s understanding of the universe. His theory of the heliocentric universe, the notion that Earth orbits the sun, went against the Ptolemy’s system which had been in place for a thousand years, which stated that Earth was at the centre of the solar system.
Owing to Copernicus’ pioneering contribution to modern science, the European Union named their Earth observation programme after him. The programme provides accurate, timely and easily accessible information to monitor our planet and its environment, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure civil security.
This image, acquired on 1 July 2020, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2020), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Taken with a ZWO ASI120MC camera, Celestron C8 telescope and Celestron CGEM mount.
Captured in SharpCap, processed in AutoStakkert and Lightroom.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2B satellite takes us over Alaska’s Columbia Glacier, one of the most rapidly changing glaciers in the world.
The glacier, which can be seen just below the middle of the image, flows down the snow-covered slopes of the Chugach Mountains into the Prince William Sound in southeast Alaska.
Over the last three decades, this tidewater glacier has retreated more than 20 km and lost about half of its total thickness and volume. The changing climate is thought to have nudged it into retreat in the 1980s, resulting in its end – or terminus – breaking off.
The terminus had previously been supported by a moraine, which is an accumulation of sediment and rock that served as an underwater barrier, helping to keep the glacier stable and insulate it from seawater. With this barrier gone, glacial dynamics took over and it began to flow to the ocean faster, calving large icebergs into the Sound. As this satellite image shows, many icebergs can be seen in the Sound.
This one glacier accounts for nearly half of the ice loss in the Chugach Mountains. However, researchers believe that the Columbia Glacier will stabilise again – probably in a few years – once its terminus retreats into shallower water and it regains traction, which should slow the rate of iceberg calving.
This image, which was captured on 5 August 2017, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA,CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission captured this image of Santiago – the capital and largest city of Chile.
Santiago lies in the centre of Chile’s most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, with a population around eight million, of which five million live in the city’s urban area. Santiago is spread over more than 600 sq km with most of the city lying between 500 to 650 m above mean sea level.
The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September).
The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries.
Cerro El Plomo, 5424 m, is the largest mountain peak visible from Santiago on clear days. There are many ski resorts in the snow-covered mountains, as well as viewpoints offering spectacular views of Santiago.
The Maipo River runs south of the city coming from the mountains and is the main river flowing through the Santiago Metropolitan Region and the Valparaíso Region of Chile. The Maipo River is by far the major source of irrigation and drinking water for the region. The Mapocho River, which flows through central Santiago, is one of its tributaries.
In the top of the image lies the Los Bronces copper mine and it represents one of the largest copper reserves in Chile. The Paloma Glacier lies just south of it. Las Tórtolas, visible in the top of the image, is an artificial lake that is used for processing the copper ore that comes from Los Bronces through an extensive network of pipes.
Copernicus Sentinel-2 data are not only used to monitor plant growth, but also to map changes in land cover, and monitor the world’s forests as well as inland and coastal waters. The mission is based on a constellation of two identical satellites in the same orbit, 180° apart for optimal coverage and data delivery. Together they cover all Earth’s land surfaces, large islands, inland and coastal waters every five days at the equator.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2022), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
“Eratosthenes, Stadius and Copernicus"
May 11, 2022
Eratosthenes crater, on the right, is nestled against the Moon’s Montes Apenninus, or Apennine Mountain chain. It is 59 km wide and 3.6 km deep. It has a well-defined circular rim, a terraced inner wall, a triangular cluster of central peaks, an irregular floor, and an outer rampart of ejecta. Close examination shows a spray of craterlets, most visible here towards the north, across the Apennine Mountains into Mare Imbrium. It does lack a system of rays, the hallmark of the youngest lunar craters.
Eratosthenes, at 3.2 billion years of age, appears quite young in comparison to Stadius crater. Stadius is the 69 km wide crater hiding in plain sight, just below and right of the center of this image. Stadius is a ghost crater, a remnant of an ancient lunar impact crater that has been nearly obliterated by basaltic lava flows. Those floods covered all except for the very highest rims of Stadius crater, hiding it from view except for a faint, disconnected ring of hills. The interior of Stadius is pocked by many tiny craterlets. These are secondary craters caused by large chunks of material, blasted skyward by the impacts that created it's two neighbors, Eratosthenes (above and right) and Copernicus (left). These chunks slammed back onto the Moon, digging craters of their own.
The youngster of this trio is, of course Copernicus (merely 800 million years young). Copernicus dominates the terrain. It is a large crater, with a width of 96 km and a depth of 3.8 km. It is visible from Earth through binoculars. The circular rim has a discernible hexagonal form, with a terraced inner wall and a 30 km wide, sloping rampart that descends nearly a kilometer to the surrounding landscape. The crater floor has not been flooded by lava, so features of the interior can be seen in unaltered form. The terrain along the floor is hilly in the southern half while the northern half is relatively smooth. The central peaks consist of three isolated mountainous rises climbing as high as 1.2 km above the floor. These peaks are separated from each other by valleys, and they form a rough line along an east–west axis.
Unlike Eratosthenes, Copernicus sits at the center of a vast system of rays. These are visible in this image as streaky patches if lighter-toned material, especially south of Eratosthenes and draping over Stadius. The rays spread as far as 800 kilometers across the face of the Moon. As they overlie even the ray systems of other young craters, such as Aristarchus and Kepler, it can be inferred that Copernicus formed more recently. The rays are less distinct than the long, linear rays extending from Tycho, instead forming a nebulous pattern with plumy markings. In multiple locations the rays lie at glancing angles, instead of forming a true radial dispersal.
An extensive pattern of smaller secondary craters can also be observed surrounding Copernicus. Many of the largest of these are seen in this image; a multitude of tinier craterlets lie below the resolution of my imaging system. Some of these secondary craters form sinuous chains in the ejecta. Note the snaky chain that runs between Copernicus and Eratosthenes, beginning to the west of Stadius and continuing out if the image at center top.
Instrumentation:
Celestron EdgeHD 8 telescope, ZWO ASI290MM monochrome camera, Celestron Advanced VX mount.
Processing:
Video data captured with Firecapture software as a 60-sec .ser file. A ROI of 1000x800 was used. Best 25% of 5777 video frames were stacked with AutoStakkert!3, wavelets processing done with Registax 6, and final processing in Photoshop CC 2022.
Hotel Copernicus - a historic building presently housing a 29-room hotel with two apartments. Copernicus Hotel is located on Kanonicza, the city’s oldest street. For centuries, this building was a part of the cathedral chapel and hosted the intellectual and financial elite of Krakow. It owes its name to the famous Polish astronomer Nicolas Copernicus, who was one of the guests of the house. He, too, must have admired the precious polychrome paintings and inscriptions dating from 1500 and, in the evening, the flaming sunsets that seem to set the city alight.
Laowa 12mm f/2.8 Zero-D from Venus Optics, full frame manual lens (does not show in EXIF)
Captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission, this image shows Cyclone Idai on 13 March 2019 west of Madagascar and heading for Mozambique. Here, the width of the storm is around 800–1000 km, but does not include the whole extent of Idai. The storm went on to cause widespread destruction in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. With thousands of people losing their lives, and houses, roads and croplands submerged, the International Charter Space and Major Disasters and the Copernicus Emergency Mapping Service were triggered to supply maps of flooded areas based on satellite data to help emergency response efforts.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA
2nd test of this new remote telescope: Cassegrain 8" 3500mm in Ager.
More info at
astro.carballada.com/new-cassegrain-8-ager/
Technical card
Imaging telescope or lens:GSO 8" f12 Classical Cassegrain
Mount:Mesu 200 Mk2
Focal reducer:Baader Q-Barlow
Software:SharpCap, Emil Kraaikamp Autostackert! 3, Registax
Filter:Astronomik Proplanet 642 - 842 nm
Accessory:ZWO EFW
Resolution: 2912x1787
Date:Jan. 5, 2020
Time: 21:14
Frames: 30
FPS: 90.00000
Focal length: 3500
Locations: AAS Montsec, Àger, Lleida, Spain
Data source: Own remote observatory
Remote source: Non-commercial independent facility
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Gulf of Kutch – also known as the Gulf of Kachchh – an inlet of the Arabian Sea, along the west coast of India.
The Gulf of Kutch divides the Kutch and the Kathiawar peninsula regions in the state of Gujarat. Reaching eastward for around 150 km, the gulf varies in width from approximately 15 to 65 km. The area is renowned for extreme daily tides which often cover the lower lying areas – comprising networks of creeks, wetlands and alluvial tidal flats in the interior region.
Gujarat is the largest salt producing state in India. Some of the white rectangles dotted around the image are salt evaporation ponds which are often found in major salt-producing areas. The arid climate in the region favours the evaporation of water from the salt ponds.
Just north of the area pictured here, lies the Great Rann of Kutch, a seasonal salt marsh located in the Thar desert. The Rann is considered the largest salt desert in the world.
The Gulf of Kutch has several ports including Okha (at the entrance of the gulf), Māndvi, Bedi, and Kandla. Kandla, visible on the northern peninsula in the left of the image, is one of the largest ports in India by volume of cargo handled.
The gulf is rich in marine biodiversity. Part of the southern coast of the Gulf of Kutch was declared Marine Sanctuary and Marine National Park in 1980 and 1982 respectively – the first marine conservatory established in India. The park covers an area of around 270 sq km, from Okha in the south (not visible) to Jodiya. There are hundreds of species of coral in the park, as well as algae, sponges and mangroves.
Copernicus Sentinel-2 is a two-satellite mission. Each satellite carries a high-resolution camera that images Earth’s surface in 13 spectral bands. The mission’s frequent revisits over the same area and high spatial resolution allow changes in water bodies to be closely monitored.
This image, acquired on 4 April 2020, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2020), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Sentinel-1B’s first data strip stretches 600 km from 80°N degrees through the Barents Sea. The image, which shows the Norwegian Svalbard archipelago on the left, was captured on 28 April 2016 at 05:37 GMT (07:37 CEST) – just two hours after the satellite’s radar was switched on. Sentinel-1B lifted off on a Soyuz rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana on 25 April at 21:02 GMT (23:02 CEST). It joins its twin, Sentinel-1A, to provide more ‘radar vision’ for Europe’s environmental Copernicus programme.
Read article: Sentinel-1B delivers
Credit: Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data [2016], processed by ESA
Ahead of World Wetlands Day, the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Lake Titicaca – one of the largest lakes in South America.
Zoom in to see this image at its full 10 m resolution or click on the circles to learn more about the features in it.
Covering an area of around 8300 sq km, Lake Titicaca lies on the high Andes plateau and straddles the border between Peru (to the west) and Bolivia (to the east). It is considered the highest major body of navigable water in the world, as it sits at an elevation of 3800 m above sea level.
The lake extends approximately 190 km from northwest to southwest and is 80 km across at its widest point. Tiquina, a narrow strait, actually separates the lake into two separate bodies of water. The larger subbasin in the northwest is called Lake Chucuito in Bolivia and Lake Grande in Peru, while the smaller in the southeast is referred to as Lake Huiñaymarca in Bolivia and Lake Pequeño in Peru.
Many rivers drain into the lake, including the Ramis, one of the largest, visible in the northwest corner of the lake. The smaller Desaguadero river drains the lake at its southern end, which then flows south through Bolivia. This outlet only accounts for a small percentage of the lake’s excess water, as the rest is lost by evaporation caused by persistent winds and intense sunlight.
Forty-one islands rise from Titicaca’s waters, the largest of which, Titicaca Island, or Isla del Sol in Spanish, can be seen just off the tip of the Copacabana Peninsula in Bolivia. Several green algal blooms can be seen in the lake, including in the lake’s northwest and southeast corners. Snow in the Andes mountain range can be seen in the top-right of the image.
Lake Titicaca is a designated Ramsar Site of International Importance, as the waters of Titicaca are essential to the wellbeing of millions of people who rely on the lake for agriculture, fishing and tourism, as well as water birds and animals that live along and on its shores.
The 2 February marks the anniversary of the signing of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, known as the Ramsar Convention, in Ramsar, Iran in 1971. World Wetlands Day aims to raise global awareness about the vital role of wetlands for our planet and population.
From their vantage point of 800 km high, Earth-observing satellites provide data and imagery on wetlands that can be used to monitor and manage these precious resources sustainably. For example, both the Copernicus Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-3 missions have recently been used to monitor the variation of chlorophyll concentrations in the lake and help detect trends and hotspots over time.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme
.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2020), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Imaged just past first quarter, with Copernicus ont he terminator and the lunar domes visible. Celestron C14 Edge HD, Televue 2.5x barlow, ASI174MM. Seeing fair to good.
Copernicus is a lunar impact crater located in eastern Oceanus Procellarum. It was named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. It typifies craters that formed during the Copernican period in that it has a prominent ray system. It may have been created by debris from the breakup of the parent body of asteroid 495 Eulalia 800 million years ago. It's about 93 kms wide.
Image Details:
- Imaging Scope: Celestron C8 Classic 8" SCT
- Mount: Celestron CGEM
- Imaging Camera: ZWO ASI183MC
- 2000 Frames captured in FireCapture
- Processed in AutoStakkert, Registax 6, Lightroom and Topaz Denoise
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance-era mathematician, astronomer, and Catholic clergyman who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than Earth at the center of the universe. Wikipedia
Malbork Castle, Zamek w Malborku
The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork is a 13th-century Teutonic castle and fortress located near the town of Malbork, Poland. It is the largest castle in the world measured by land area and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Wikipedia
It was originally constructed by the Teutonic Knights, a German Catholic religious order of crusaders, in a form of an Ordensburg fortress. The Order named it Marienburg in honour of Mary, mother of Jesus. In 1457, it since served as one of the several Polish royal residences and the seat of Polish offices and institutions to 1772. From then on the castle was under German rule for over 170 years until 1945.
The castle is a classic example of a medieval fortress and, on its completion in 1406, was the world's largest brick castle. UNESCO designated the "Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork" and the Malbork Castle Museum a World Heritage Site in December 1997. It is one of two World Heritage Sites in the region (north-central Poland), together with the "Medieval Town of Toruń", which was founded in 1231.
Malbork Castle is also one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated on 16 September 1994. Its listing is maintained by the National Heritage Board of Poland.
With the rise of Adolf Hitler to power in the early 1930s, the Nazis used the castle as a destination for annual pilgrimages of both the Hitler Youth and the League of German Girls. The Teutonic Castle at Marienburg served as a blueprint for the Order Castles of the Third Reich built under Hitler's reign. In 1945 during World War II combat in the area, more than half the castle was destroyed. At the conclusion of the war, the city of Malbork and the castle became again part of Poland. The castle has been mostly reconstructed, with restoration ongoing since 1962. A new restoration was completed in April 2016. Malbork Castle remains the largest brick complex in Europe.
Lunar crater Copernicus imaged from London under almost full illumination on 11th November 2016. Image 1 was shot through a 685nm IR pass filter, image 2 is an inverted version of image 1 and image 3 is an LRGB colour image.
Celestron Edge HD11, ASI174MM camera
Processed using AS!2, Registax6 & Photoshop CC
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Morbihan – a French department in the south of Brittany.
Brittany is an important cultural region in the northwest of France and is divided into four departments: Ille-et-Vilaine in the east, Côtes d'Armor in the north, Finistère in the west and Morbihan in the south.
Morbihan takes its name from ‘Mor-Bihan’ which means ‘little sea’ in the Breton language. The Gulf of Morbihan, visible in the centre of the image, is one of the most famous features of the coastline with numerous islands and islets. The gulf is around 20 km long from east to west and around 15 km wide from north to south. It opens onto the Bay of Quiberon by a narrow passage between Locmariaquer and Port-Navalo.
Many ships and vessels can be seen in the bay. Several islands are visible in the image, including the small islands of Houat and Hœdic and the large Belle Île, which is visible in the bottom-left of the image. Belle Île is known for the sharp cliff edges visible on the southwest side, but also for its beaches and renowned opera festival.
The town and sea port of Lorient is visible in the top-left of the image. The town is situated on the right bank of the Scorff River at its confluence with the Blavet on the Bay of Biscay. The island of Groix lies a few kilometres off Lorient. The island has high cliffs on its north coast and sandy beaches in secluded coves on the south coast.
Morbihan is also known for its ‘Alignements de Carnac’ which consists of rows of around 3000 standing stones and megalithic tombs. The stones were said to be erected during the Neolithic period, around 4500 BC. Most of the stones are within the Breton village of Carnac, but some to the east are within La Trinité-sur-Mer.
Fields dominate the French countryside as seen in this image captured on 13 September 2020. Brittany is known for its rich and varied agriculture including meats and dairy products, but also provides a variety of high quality fruit and vegetables including tomatoes, strawberries, peas and green beans.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission is designed to provide images that can be used to distinguish between different crop types as well as data on numerous plant indices, such as leaf area, leaf chlorophyll and leaf water – all essential to monitor plant growth accurately.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2020), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-3A satellite takes us over the Antarctic Peninsula and the adjacent Larsen Ice Shelf, from which a massive iceberg broke off in July.
The image has been manipulated, so clouds appear pink while snow and ice are blue to help us differentiate between them. The only land clearly visible is the tip of the Peninsula in the upper left, while sea ice covers the Weddell Sea to the right.
Captured on 25 September, the image shows the iceberg near the centre. The A68 berg had been jostling back and forth against the ice shelf, but more recent satellite imagery revealed that the gap between the berg and the shelf is widening – possibly drifting out to sea.
An iceberg’s progress is difficult to predict. It may remain in the area for decades, but if it breaks up, parts may drift north into warmer waters. Since the ice shelf is already floating, this giant iceberg does not influence sea level.
A68 is about twice the size of Luxembourg and with its calving has changed the outline of the Antarctic Peninsula forever – about 10% of the area of the Larsen C Ice Shelf has been removed.
The loss of such a large piece is of interest because ice shelves along the peninsula play an important role in ‘buttressing’ glaciers that feed ice seawards, effectively slowing their flow.
Previous events further north on the Larsen A and B shelves, captured by ESA’s ERS and Envisat satellites, indicate the flow of glaciers behind can accelerate when a large portion of an ice shelf is lost, contributing to sea-level rise.
This image is featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over of the green algae blooms swirling around the Baltic Sea.
'Algae bloom' is the term used to describe the rapid multiplying of phytoplankton – microscopic marine plants that drift on or near the surface of the sea. The chlorophyll that phytoplankton use for photosynthesis collectively tints the surrounding ocean waters, providing a way of detecting these tiny organisms from space.
In most of the Baltic Sea, there are two annual blooms – the spring bloom and the cyanobacterial (also called blue-green algae) bloom in late summer. The Baltic Sea faces many serious challenges, including toxic pollutants, deep-water oxygen deficiencies, and toxic blooms of cyanobacteria affecting the ecosystem, aquaculture and tourism.
Cyanobacteria have qualities similar to algae and thrive on phosphorus in the water. High water temperatures and sunny, calm weather often lead to particularly large blooms that pose problems to the ecosystem.
In this image captured on 20 July 2019, the streaks, eddies and whirls of the late summer blooms, mixed by winds and currents, are clearly visible. Without in situ measurements, it is difficult to distinguish the type of algae that covers the sea as many different types of algae grow in these waters.
The highest concentrations of algal blooms are said to occur in the Central Baltic and around the island of Gotland, visible to the left in the image.
Although algal blooms are a natural and essential part of life in the sea, human activity is also said to increase the number of annual blooms. Agricultural and industrial run-off pours fertilisers into the sea, providing additional nutrients algae need to form large blooms.
The bacteria that consume the decaying plants suck oxygen out of the water, creating dead zones where fish cannot survive. Large summer blooms can contain toxic algae that are dangerous for both humans and other animals.
Satellite data can track the growth and spread of harmful algae blooms in order to alert and mitigate against damaging impacts for tourism and fishing industries.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Very wobbly seeing for this with passing cloud every so often too. Skywatcher 120ED, 2x Omni Celestron barlow and best 2000 of 2500 frames captured with Orion SSAG in planetary mode.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Faroe Islands, located halfway between Iceland and Norway in the North Atlantic Ocean. The Faroe Islands are an archipelago made up of 18 jagged islands and are a self-governing nation under the external sovereignty of the Kingdom of Denmark.
The archipelago is around 80 km wide and has a total area of approximately 1400 sq km. The official language of the Faroe Islands is Faroese, a Nordic language which derives from the language of the Norsemen who settled the islands over 1000 years ago.
The islands have a population of around 50 000 inhabitants – as well as 70 000 sheep. Around 40% of the population reside in the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn, visible on the island of Streymoy, slightly above the centre of the image.
The islands are a popular destination for birdwatchers, particularly on the island of Mykines, the westernmost island of the Faroese Archipelago. The island provides a breeding and feeding habitat for thousands of birds, including the Atlantic Puffins.
Several inland water bodies can be seen dotted around the islands. Lake Sørvágsvatn, the largest lake of the Faroe Islands, is visible at the bottom of Vágar Island to the right of Mykines. Vágar Airport, the only airport in the Faroe Islands, can be seen left of the lake.
In this image, captured on 21 June 2018, several clouds can be seen over the Northern Isles, top right of the image. Low vegetation is visible in bright green.
The unique landscape of the Faroe Islands was shaped by volcanic activity approximately 50 to 60 million years ago. The original plateau was later restructured by the glaciers of the ice age and the landscape eroded into an archipelago characterised by steep cliffs, deep valleys and narrow fjords.
The official language of the Faroe Islands is Faroese, a Nordic language which derives from the language of the Norsemen who settled the islands over 1000 years ago.
The islands are particularly known for their dramatic landscape, grass-roofed houses and treeless moorlands. The Faroe Islands boast over 1000 km of coastline and because of their elongated shape, one can never be more than five km to the ocean from any point of the islands.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2018), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Lunar crater Copernicus imaged from London on 19th January 2016
Celestron Edge HD11, ASI120M camera
Processed in AS!2, Registax 6 & PS CS6
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Mount Fuji, Japan’s highest mountain standing at 3776 metres tall. In this spring image, the mountain can be seen coated in pure white snow.
This snow-capped mountain is often shrouded in cloud and fog, but this image was captured on a clear day, by the Copernicus Sentinel-2A satellite - flying 800 km above.
Mount Fuji is near the Pacific coast of central Honshu, straddling the prefectures of Yamanashi and Shizuoka. On a clear day, the mountain can be seen from Yokohama and Tokyo - both over 120 km drive away.
The majestic stratovolcano is a composite of three successive volcanoes. Generations of volcanic activity have turned it into the Mount Fuji as we know it today. This volcanic activity is a result of the geological process of plate tectonics. Mount Fuji is a product of the subduction zone that straddles Japan, with the Pacific Plate and the Philippine Plate being subducted under the Eurasian plate.
The last explosive activity occurred in 1707, creating the Hoei crater – a vent visible on the mountain’s southeast flank, as well as the volcanic ash field which can be seen on the east side.
Mount Fuji is a symbol of Japan, and a popular tourist destination. Around 300 000 people climb the mountain every year – and in the image several hiking trails can be seen leading to the base of the mountain. The city of Fujinomiya, visible in the bottom left of the image, is the traditional starting point for hikers.
Many golf courses, a popular sport in Japan, can be seen dotted around the image.
Worshipped as a sacred mountain, Mount Fuji is of great cultural importance for the Shinto religion. Pilgrims have climbed the mountain for centuries and many shrines and temples dot the landscape surrounding the volcano.
This image, captured on 8 May 2019, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Tonight's Moon as Crater Copernicus becomes visible in December.
I believe this one was with the tungsten white balance.
During Blue Hour, but the blue sky isn't visible at f/10.
Sunrise over a Billabong in the top End of the NT. There is some fog/mist and a dash of smoke in the air.
Many of you would know that the 16th century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus was the first to present to the world a detailed and eventually widely accepted mathematical model supporting the premise that the Earth is moving and the Sun actually stays still, despite the impression from our point of view of a moving Sun. Wiki again.
The Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission captured this image of the powerful Cyclone Mocha on 13 May 2023 as it made its way across the Bay of Bengal heading northeast towards Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Cyclone Mocha originated in the Indian Ocean, and it gradually intensified while moving towards the Bay of Bengal. Winds topped 280 km per hour, making it one the strongest storms on record in the North Indian Ocean, similar to Cyclone Fani, which hit the same area in May 2019.
Although the storm weakened slightly as it approached Myanmar and Bangladesh, it caused widespread destruction as it made landfall on 14 May.
With thousands of people losing their houses, infrastructure seriously damaged and croplands inundated, both the International Charter Space and Major Disasters and the Copernicus Emergency Mapping Service were triggered to supply maps based on satellite data to help civil protection authorities and the international humanitarian community with their emergency response efforts.
Satellites orbiting Earth can provide indispensable up-to-date information to observe such events, as shown here from Copernicus Sentinel-3. The mission is designed to measure, monitor and understand large-scale global dynamics and provides essential information in near-real time for ocean and weather forecasting.
Acquired with the Ocean and Land Colour Instrument, this wide view covers an area of over 2000 km from north to south. The storm is estimated to be more than 1000 km across.
In the cloud-free portion on top of the image we can see parts of India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar and the entire country of Bhutan. The white snow-capped mountains of the eastern part of the Himalayas, including Mount Everest, the highest mountain on the planet, are clearly visible. The Tibetan Plateau – part of China – appear in brownish colours owing to the absence of vegetation.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2023), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Telescope: Celestron Edge HD 800
Camera: ZWO ASI 178MM
Mount: iOptron CEM60
Location: Beveren-Waas Belgium
Date: 2023.03.01
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the algal blooms swirling around the Pacific Ocean, just off the coast of Japan.
Algae blooms refer to the rapid multiplying of phytoplankton – microscopic marine plants that drift on or near the surface of the sea. Excessive algal growth, or algal blooms, can become visible to the naked eye and collectively tint ocean waters, allowing us to detect these tiny organisms from space.
Although algal blooms are a natural and essential part of life in the sea, human activity is also said to increase the number of annual blooms. Harmful algal blooms can be stimulated by environmental factors, such as light, warmer water temperatures and excessive nutrients.
In the image pictured here, captured on 14 June 2019, high concentrations of algae can be seen around 130 km off Hokkaido Island, the second largest island of Japan. This particular algal bloom measured more than 500 km across and 200 km wide, with the area pictured here showing just a small portion of the bloom, around 100 km from north to south and around 110 km from east to west.
During the spring bloom season, nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates are more abundant in the surface waters. Without direct in situ measurements, it is difficult to distinguish the type of algae that cover the ocean here. Algae is then usually carried by winds and currents closer to the coast of Japan.
It is in this part of the Pacific Ocean, near Hokkaido, where the colder Oyashio Current converges from the north with the warmer Kuroshio Current, which flows from the south. When two currents with different temperatures and densities collide, they often create eddies – swirls of water drifting along the edge of the two water masses. The phytoplankton growing atop the surface waters become concentrated along the boundaries of these eddies and trace out the motions of the water.
Phytoplankton play an important role in the food chain, but they also have an impact on the global carbon cycle by absorbing carbon dioxide on a scale equivalent to that of terrestrial plants. Primary production is often used to describe the synthesis of organic material from carbon dioxide and water through photosynthesis. Even small variations in primary productivity can affect carbon dioxide concentrations, as well as influencing biodiversity and fisheries.
As ocean surfaces warm in response to increasing atmospheric greenhouse gases, phytoplankton productivity will need to be monitored both consistently and systematically.
Satellite data can not only be used to track the growth and spread of harmful algae blooms in order to alert and mitigate against damaging impacts for tourism and fishing industries, but have also recently proven fundamental to providing a global view of phytoplankton and their role in, and response to, climate change.
This image is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2A satellite takes us over Lake Disappointment in northwest Australia. Found in one of the most remote areas of the country, it is believed to have been discovered by an early explorer called Frank Hann in 1897. He was convinced that the series of creeks that he had been following in the east Pilbara area would lead to a freshwater lake and drinking water supply. Such was his disappointment to find a salt lake at the end of his journey, he gave the lake its memorable name.
Although the lake is dry most of the time, it is home to many species of water birds. When it is full, primarily during very wet periods, the lake retains water and allows no outflow and is hence classified as an endorheic basin.
In this false-colour image, the differences in the shades of blue in the lake reflect the depth of the water. The darker the blue, the deeper the water is. A higher concentration of salt might also explain the different colours of the water round the edges of the lake.
It is likely that the red lines spread across the top part of the image represent some form of vegetation in this predominantly arid area on the edge of the Gibson Desert. Karlamilyi National Park, Western Australia's largest and most remote national park, can be found north of the lake. The park spans over 1.3 million hectares between the Great Sandy Desert and the Little Sandy Desert.
Covering an area of almost 380 000 sq km, the Shire of East Pilbara, also to the north of the lake, is the third largest municipality in the world. The population was registered as only around 11 000 in 2017, with mining constituting the backbone of the local economy.
The Sentinel-2 mission for Europe’s Copernicus programme is tasked with monitoring our changing lands. Designed specifically to monitor vegetation, it can also detect differences in sparsely vegetated areas, as well as the mineral composition of soil.
This image, which was captured on 1 April 2017, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2017), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
On 21 November, the Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite lifted off from the Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, US. The Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite is the first of two identical satellites to provide critical measurements of sea-level change. Since sea-level rise is a key indicator of climate change, accurately monitoring the changing height of the sea surface over decades is essential for climate science, for policy-making and, ultimately, for protecting the lives of those in low-lying regions at risk. Once in orbit and commissioned, this new mission will take the role of radar altimetry reference mission, continuing the long-term record of measurements of sea-surface height started in 1992 by the French–US Topex Poseidon and then the Jason series of satellite missions.
The Copernicus Sentinel-6 mission is a true example of international cooperation. While Sentinel-6 is one of the European Union’s family of Copernicus missions, its implementation is the result of the unique collaboration between ESA, NASA, Eumetsat and NOAA, with contribution from the French space agency CNES.
Read more about the Copernicus Sentinel-6 mission.
Credits: ESA - S. Corvaja
Sunrise over lunar crater Copernicus.
Aberkenfig, South Wales
Lat +51.542 Long -3.593
Skywatcher 254mm Newtonian, Tal 2x Barlow & ZWO ASI 120MC Astronomical Imaging Camera.
4000 frames captured & 50% Processed with Registax 6 & G.I.M.P.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over part of Abu Dhabi – one of the seven emirates that constitute the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Covering an area of approximately 67 000 sq km, the Emirate of Abu Dhabi is the largest emirate in the UAE – accounting for around 87% of the total land area of the federation. Abu Dhabi has around 200 islands lying along its 700 km long coastline.
The city of Abu Dhabi, after which the emirate is named, is located on an island in the Persian Gulf and can be seen slightly below the centre of the image. Abu Dhabi is the capital and the second-most populous city of the UAE – after Dubai. The city is directly connected to the mainland by three bridges: Maqta, Mussafah and Sheikh Zayed.
Just east of the city lies the Mangrove National Park, visible as a dark green patch of land. The protected area is around 20 sq km and includes mangrove forests, salt marshes, mudflats and is home to more than 60 bird species.
The waters surrounding Abu Dhabi are said to hold the world’s largest population of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins. The lighter aqua colours are shallow waters, which contrast with the dark coloured waters of the Gulf.
The iconic red roof of Ferrari World can be seen in the centre-right of the image. The Ferrari-themed park is located on Yas Island and is said to be the world’s largest indoor theme park. Abu Dhabi International Airport is visible southeast of the park.
Sentinel-2 is a two-satellite mission to supply the coverage and data delivery needed for Europe’s Copernicus programme. The mission’s frequent revisits over the same area and high spatial resolution allow changes in water bodies to be closely monitored.
This image, captured on 27 January 2019, is also featured on the Earth from Space video programme.
Credits: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2019), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO