Tags: NASA, Earth Observation, Satellite Imagery, App
Publication: Examiner.com
Publication Date: 12/03/2012

Akpatok Island as seen by Landsat 7 in 2001. Image credit: USGS/EROS Center

A new NASA publication features a collection of high-resolution images taken by Earth-observing satellites orbiting our planet. The book is called “Earth as Art” and it’s being published in print and digital form, including as an iPad app.

The images celebrate the beauty of Earth in its different textures, shapes, colors and patterns. Arizona’s Painted Dessert, Saharan Dune Sea in Algeria, the Mississippi River Delta, the Byrd Glacier in Antarctica, and the Himalayas’ snow-covered peaks are some of the sights the user can appreciate in this publication.

In its 158 pages, the book features 75 images from U.S. environmental satellites such as the Landsat 5 and 7, Terra, Aqua, and Earth Observing-1 (EO-1), which also perform scientific research tasks. Because of the high-technology devices on board these satellites, the spacecraft can reveal landscape and details not always visible to other devices.

The iPad version of “Earth as Art” allows users to zoom into the images and learn more about the satellite used to capture each one.

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