USING SPACE SHUTTLE PHOTOGRAPHS TO OBSERVE EARTH SYSTEM INTERACTIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES

Photographs taken by Space Shuttle astronauts show the Earth’s spheres operating on enormous scales. These photographs are excellent observational data that document large-scale earth-system processes and interactions as well as natural and human-induced environmental changes. Photos of reefs (Great Barrier Reef), atolls (Bora-Bora, Maldives) and algal/planktonic build-ups demonstrate a biosphere intimately connected with the geosphere and hydrosphere. Photos of weather patterns (thunderstorms, typhoons, fronts) and circulation systems (Von Karman vortices, sea ice eddies) depict dynamic linkages between the atmosphere and hydrosphere. Photos of volcanoes (Klyuchevskaya, Mt. Etna) erupting and dust blows in Mauritania and Afghanistan illustrate contrasting inputs of earth material into the atmosphere. Desert scenes from Africa show build-ups of windblown sand into dune fields. River systems, canyon landscapes and glaciated terrains as viewed from Space reveal modification of the geosphere by the hydrosphere. Lake-level fluctuations documented from Space indicate natural short-term environmental changes. Tectonic elements clearly shown on photos such as mountain belts (Himalaya, Sierra Nevada), volcanic arcs (Cascades), rifts (East African Rift, Basin and Range) and faults (San Andreas), however, are linked to slower internal Earth processes. Space Shuttle photographs also record the deleterious effects of humans on the environment and environmental changes on accelerated time scales. Those of deltas show input of sediment into the hydrosphere, which can be enhanced by human activities (Betsiboka River of Madagascar, Mississippi River). Po River Valley smog, smoke from fires, and other forms of air pollution show human-generated input into the atmosphere. Aral Sea photos reveal human-induced, short-term lake level changes. Photos of pivot irrigation systems in Saudi Arabia and other (semi-)arid locales indicate groundwater extraction from drylands for agriculture. Other photos such as those of Brazil, Bolivia and Borneo show continuing tropical rain forest destruction and further indicate rapid modification of Earth’s surface by humans. All of these photos portray complex yet clear interrelationships between Earth’s spheres and human activity at scales best viewed from Space.