PIA18034: Warm Rivers Play Role in Arctic Sea Ice Melt
 Target Name:  Earth
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Terra
 Spacecraft:  Terra
 Instrument:  MODIS
 Product Size:  2410 x 935 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  NASA
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA18034.tif (6.763 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA18034.jpg (430.9 kB)

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

click here for Figure 1 for PIA18034click here for Figure 2 for PIA18034
Figure 1Figure 2
Click on an individual image for full resolution image

These images show sea surface temperatures of the Beaufort Sea where Canada's Mackenzie River discharges into the Arctic Ocean, as measured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft. The image at left was obtained June 14, 2012, before discharged waters from the Mackenzie River (located in the bottom center of the image) broke through the adjacent sea ice barrier (shown in light blue) stuck along the shore of the Mackenzie River delta. The image at right, acquired July 5, 2012, shows the extensive intrusion of heat carried by the river waters once they breached the sea ice barrier (shown in yellow, orange and red). Scientists saw an increase of 11.7 degrees Fahrenheit (6.5 degrees Celsius) in the surface temperature of the open water, which enhanced sea ice melt.

Image Credit:
NASA

Image Addition Date:
2014-03-05