NASA Photo ID: STS046-105-034      File Name: 10064868.jpg
  Film Type: 70mm                    Date Taken: 08/08/92
  Title: STS-46 Earth observation of the Earth's limb at sunrise
  Description:
  STS-46 Earth observation taken aboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104,
  is  of the Earth's limb near sunrise at an Orbiter altitude of 128 nautical 
  miles, from a position just to the northeast of the Hawaiian Islands.  The 
  limb appears thicker than in most photographs from previous missions, due
  to  the use of 350m focal length lens. The black parts of the image are the
  unlit  Earth in the foreground and the darkness of space above.  Uppermost
  layers of  the atmosphere appear dark blue due to molecular scattering of
  solar rays.   Beneath the blue is a white layer within which a thin,
  stratified layer of  suspended scattering material can be identified.  The
  greyish-red band is  residue of the Mt. Pinatubo eruption of June, 1991,
  comprised of a  combination of ash and sulfuric acid particles at an
  altitude of 20 to 27  kilometers above the Earth.  The boundary between the
  grey-red and lighter  colored red is the lower stratosphere.  The clouds
  visible are cirrus at  40,000 ft altitude.  Below the stratosphere the
  lower atmosphere appears  darker red because of scattering by dust, water
  vapor, and smoke.       
  
  Subject terms:
  ATLANTIS (ORBITER)                      
  EARTH ATMOSPHERE                        
  EARTH LIMB                              
  EARTH OBSERVATIONS (FROM SPACE)         
  STS-46                                  
  SUNRISE                                 
  TERMINATOR LINES                        
  

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