
STS089-743-004 (22-31 Jan. 1998) --- This picture showing Auckland Island, New Zealand was photographed with a 70mm handheld camera from the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Endeavour. A spectacular occurrence of internal waves in the ocean is visible in the wake of the island. These waves can be generated by currents or, in some cases, wind across the island. In this case, the observation was that these waves were visible after the sunglint disappeared, suggesting current generated effects. If so, the circum-polar current that moves west-east around Antarctica would generate the scalloped appearance in the water east of the island. There is characteristically very little surface expression to these waves so they would not be noticed by a ship in this region. Fundamental processes of oceanic circulation and interaction are poorly understood. These shots help oceanographers model the dynamics of the open ocean and work out mixing models for ocean layer and ocean-air interaction (important for modeling CO2 budget, for example). The long linear valleys and bays have been excavated by glaciers cutting into this long-extinct volcano. This island is located on the submerged Campbell Plateau, which is an area almost as large as the exposed land of South Island, New Zealand. Scientists report that the plateau was submerged when New Zealand, Antarctica and Australia separated "around 75 million years ago." This could be viewed as one of the tallest mountains on the plateau. Usually the weather in this area is bad so this photo opportunity was considered a "great catch." Photo credit: NASA
Most NASA images are in the public domain and free to use. Credit NASA as the source. Check NASA's media usage guidelines for details. Images featuring identifiable individuals may require additional permissions.
NASA ID
sts089-743-004
Date Created
January 26, 1998
Center
JSC
Media Type
image
Download this image in multiple resolutions. All NASA media are free for public use.
Large
1920px