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Astronaut Photography of Earth - Display Record
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IdentificationMission: ISS010 Roll: E Frame: 23748 Mission ID on the Film or image: ISS010
Country or Geographic Name: USA-MICHIGAN
Features: STR. OF MACKINAC, GLINT, ICE
Center Point Latitude: 46.0 Center Point Longitude: -85.0 (Negative numbers indicate south for latitude and west for longitude)
Stereo: (Yes indicates there is an adjacent picture of the same area)
ONC Map ID: JNC Map ID:
CameraCamera Tilt: 33
Camera Focal Length: 180mm
Camera: E4: Kodak DCS760C Electronic Still Camera
Film: 3060E : 3060 x 2036 pixel CCD, RGBG array.
Percentage of Cloud Cover: 10 (0-10)
NadirGMT Date: 20050409 (YYYYMMDD) GMT Time: 170850 (HHMMSS)
Nadir Point Latitude: 47.8, Longitude: -84.0 (Negative numbers indicate south for latitude and west for longitude)
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: Southwest
Sun Azimuth: 169 (Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point)
Spacecraft Altitude: 190 nautical miles (352 km)
Sun Elevation Angle: 50 (Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point)
Orbit Number: 491
CaptionsSpring Thaw, Straits of Mackinac
The Mackinac Bridge spans a stretch of water five miles wide between Michiganís lower and upper peninsulas. The strait connects Lakes Michigan (left) and Huron (right). The bridge is a combination of pier-supported spans with a high, central suspension sector that allows passage of lake steamers. The suspension sector is the longest in the Americas (8, 614 feet or 1.6 miles). Prior to construction of the bridge, the only passage across the straits was by ferryboat.
This pair of images shows the Mackinac Straits while they were still frozen (top) and as they began to thaw (below). The March 22 view shows shipping lanes opened by ice breakers. A narrow passage connects the cleared shipping channel to the small town of St. Ignace at the north end of the bridge (Mackinaw City appears at the south end). The April view shows the ice broken into a series of irregular rafts that appear gray against bright water. The whitish appearance of the water is not snow or ice, but instead is sunlight glinting off the water back to camera. The shipping channel is maintained even through remnants of the ice mass, but the ice ridges can be hazardous to shipping until the last of the ice breaks up.