ESA ISS Image: Bonaire, Curacao, Aruba

Bonaire, Curacao, Aruba

Credit: ESA/NASA

Durrat Al Bahrain, from ISS

Durrat Al Bahrain, photographed on 23rd January 2011, is a series of artificial islands that were built to house hotels and residential buildings.
Picture: BARCROFT

Canary Island: Calmas Sea - Underwater Volcanic ash

An underwater volcano sends ash to the surface of the sea off the Canary Island of El Hierro

Picture: EPA/SPANISH CIVIL GUARD

ESA ENVISAT: Aegean islands

This Envisat image is dominated by the island of Crete separating the Aegean and Libyan Seas in the eastern Mediterranean.

At the top of the image we can see the southern portion of the Cyclades island group, including the islands of Milos, Ios, Anafi and Santorini.

This image is a compilation of three passes by Envisat’s radar on 11 December 2010, 10 January and 11 March 2011.

Each is assigned a colour (red, green and blue) and combined to produce this representation.

New colours reveal changes in the surface between Envisat’s passes.

For a high resolution version of this image, please visit: www.esa.int/esaEO/SEMLH2GURTG_index_0.html

Credits: ESA

Canary Islands: Calmas Sea, Underwater Volcano eruption

An aerial view of coloured water caused by lava and gas emissions coming from the eruption of an underwater volcano in the waters of the Calmas Sea off the coast of Hierro Island, in the Canary Islands. 

Experts said the gases did not present a danger to the island's 10,000 residents.

Picture: EPA/GELMERT FINOL

Bazaruto Island, St Antonio Island and Magaruque Island

This image taken by astronaut Clayton Anderson aboard the International Space Station shows the beauty of Bazaruto Island, St Antonio Island and Magaruque Island in the Mozambique Channel

Picture: AP/NASA - Clayton C. Anderson

NASA Astronaut Image: Hurricane Irene

High above the Earth from aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Ron Garan snapped this image of Hurricane Irene as it passed over the Carribean on Aug. 22, 2011.

The National Hurricane Centre noted on Aug. 22 that Irene is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 5 to 10 inches across Puerto Rico, The Virgin Islands, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Southeastern Bahamas and The Turks and Caicos Islands.

Isolated maximum amounts of rainfall may reach up to 20 inches.

Image Credit: NASA

Southern Netherlands: Zeeland from space

The Netherlands: Along the southern coast of the Netherlands, sediment-laden rivers have created a massive delta of islands and waterways in the gaps between the coastal dunes.

In this false-colour composite, acquired on May 24, 2002, the darker the red shown, the more densely vegetated the terrain.

The light blue-green areas show bare land surface.

If you look closely you will see the series of dams and barriers erected to prevent catastrophic flooding in Zeeland.

This was started after 1953 when several thousand people were drowned when the sea surged to higher than normal levels. Because most of Netherlands lies 5 metres under sea level, a breach in the sea walls can have a devastating effect.