Earth observations taken during STS-77 mission

STS077-162-036 (19-29 May 1996) --- An oblique view of eastern New York State, Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River. This view of New York State looking northeast was provided by the crew members of the mission. The Linhof camera, a 4x5 format instrument, provides a wide panorama of the region. If the picture is oriented with the NASA logo to the left bottom corner, North will be to the upper side of the frame. Lake Ontario is in the upper left corner and the Catskills are in the lower portion of the scene. The Finger Lakes from Cayuga to Oneida are in the left-center. One of the remarkable aspects of this photograph is this part of New York only averages 68 cloud free days per year. According to scientists studying the photo collection, the entire area of this photograph was covered by glaciers during the ice ages. The glaciers left their marks in the creation of the Finger Lakes and the formation of Lake Ontario.