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Credit & Copyright: STS-92
Crew,
NASA
Explanation:
What is not pretty about the
above picture?
In a word: smog.
In 2000 October the orbiting
Space Shuttle
Discovery photographed update
New York just at sunset.
Visible is golden
sunlight reflecting from two of the
Great Lakes (Erie and Ontario), and several of the
Finger Lakes.
Between the clouds at the top and ground at the bottom, however, is a
trapped layer of smog.
Smog is mostly ozone but may contain small amounts of
volatile organic compounds.
As opposed to
"good smog"
in the upper atmosphere, "bad smog" near the ground is
created mostly by humans.
In the upper atmosphere,
ozone reflects back harmful
ultraviolet radiation,
but when it occurs near the ground, it can be inhaled.
Smog continues to be studied with an eye for how it develops and how it
affects human health.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Earth
Publications with words: Earth
See also:
- APOD: 2025 October 12 Á All the Water on Europa
- APOD: 2025 December 8 Á Flying Over the Earth at Night
- APOD: 2025 September 7 Á All the Water on Planet Earth
- APOD: 2025 June 15 Á Two Worlds One Sun
- APOD: 2024 December 29 Á Methane Bubbles Frozen in Lake Baikal
- Interplanetary Earth
- Earthset from Orion