• MODIS Pic of the Day 03 July 2022

    From Dan Richter@1:317/3 to All on Sun Jul 3 12:00:54 2022
    July 3, 2022 - Fresh Snow in the Andes

    Snow in the Andes
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    On June 25-27, 2022, an early winter storm brought a layer of fresh
    snow to the central Andes Mountains.

    On June 30, three days after the skies cleared, the Moderate Resolution
    Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite
    acquired a true-color image showing a bright white blanket of snow atop
    the high elevations straddling both Chile (west) and Argentina (east).
    A gorgeous bank of marine stratocumulus cloud covered the Pacific Ocean
    while low cloud (fog) crept over part of Chile’s coastal plain.
    According to a report published on June 30 by Ski Portillo, a ski
    resort located near the bottom of the image, 150 cm (59 in) of snow had
    fallen this season. Ski Portillo opened on June 16.

    The Andes—the longest series of mountain ranges the world—span about
    7,242 kilometers (4,500 miles) and runs through seven countries. The
    area captured in the image extends about 870 km (540 mi) from north to
    south.

    The snowpack that accumulates atop this extraordinary mountain chain
    each winter is extremely important for many reasons, including the fact
    that it provides the primary source of water for communities at lower
    altitudes. In both Chile and Argentina, springtime and summertime
    meltwater fill the streams that cascade off the mountains, filling
    reservoirs used for drinking water, power generation, and agriculture.

    In the central Andes, the winter snowfall is so generous that a light
    blanket of snow lingers most of the summer. This summer snowcover plays
    another important role: protecting glaciers. Fresh snow is highly
    reflective, preventing underlying glacial ice from absorbing the Sun’s
    energy, warming up, and melting.

    During this past summer, the snow across most of the mountaintops
    melted early, the result of a dry winter and a January 2022 heatwave
    that sent temperatures soaring to 40°C (104°F) in some locations,
    creating conditions ripe for rapid glacial melting.

    On June 14, 2022, NASA’s Earth Observatory published an Image of the
    Day that discussed the January 2022 heatwave and the impact on the
    glaciers of the Andes. Entitled “Losing a Layer of Protection”, that
    story can be found by clicking here.

    Image Facts
    Satellite: Terra
    Date Acquired: 6/30/2022
    Resolutions: 1km (1.1 MB), 500m (3 MB), 250m (2.3 MB)
    Bands Used: 1,4,3
    Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



    https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-07-03

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