Winnipesaukee from space
 

Chris Hadfield, Commander of the International Space Station, posted this photo he took of the East Coast today. I thought it was neat to see Winni from space.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v5...ps3b76f085.jpg

Sorry to say..That's NOT Winni. That's Lake Ontario. ..Great lakes..:look: OK: Winni is a Spec way to the right....NB

Look over to the right....
 

Lake Winni is just to the left of a cloud bank that looks like a man with a big nose.

just wondering
 

Am I the only one that thinks that Winni looks like a lobster?

It is in New Hampshah.... New England lobstah!

My reaction too!

Great photo, but how was it taken TODAY, when we were socked-in with clouds and rain today down here in RI? looks like a pretty clear day here...

Posted today. I don't know when he actually took it. I just thought it was cool to see Winni from space from the perspective of a human flying over at 17,000 mph. ;)

I watch the ISS coverage often on NASA TV and the views are incredible, especially ones like this of the northeast USA. One interesting point, the Space Station is not "flying" as much as it is "free falling" towards Earth because of gravity. Very cool stuff.

:laugh: It does. I never saw that before!

You can sign up to be notified by email when the ISS is visible in the night sky. We've watched it go by a few times, it's pretty cool. :)


http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/index.cfm

Nope - I've told folks before that my house is up in the right claw.

Block Island
 

Looks pretty big in this photo! I've cycled that island many times!

Well sort of free falling but countered by centripetal force. In classical Newtonian physics when the speed related centripetal force equals the gravitation force then a stable circular orbit is achieved.

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/circles/u6l4c.cfm

All of those useful communications satellites are at a speed/altitude so that they orbit exactly once per day matching the earth's rotation hence "appear" to be parked in a fixed spot overhead. Of course the space station is in a much lower orbit and appears to zip along.

I wasn't trying to get too technical, my point was it is simply free falling to Earth, like the Space Shuttle, but because of the Earth's rotation and the ISS speed it can never catch up. Centripetal force counters gravity. Although, occasionally a thrust is deployed to get back on course.

Great link. If you really like physics you can watch free physics classroom lectures from MIT on youtube.

I have that, thank you. It's really cool watching the ISS zip by.

Good point on the youtube classes. Even more extensive are the free classes in iTunes. There is a very large number of colleges/universities and thousands of choices class subjects in every discipline from art to quantum physics. It used to be under iTunes podcasts but now under iTunes University. Download the free iTunes program and then download free lectures to watch whenever you want.

Well, not quite. There is gravitational attraction between earth and satellite. The centripetal force is the earth's pull on the satellite, and the centrifugal force is the satellite 's pull on the earth (equal and opposite). It's when the satellite has a velocity at right angles to that force such that F=M*V^2/R that the orbit is circular. With the velocity always at right angles to the gravitational pull, there is no component of that force along the direction of motion, so the satellite's speed is undiminished (except by by friction with the few molecules of air up that high).

Imagine a tower 100 miles tall. At the top you throw a rock sideways at modest speed. The rock falls in a curved arc, getting steeper as gravity pulls the rock down. If you fire the rock out from a cannon, the rock lands farther out from the base of the tower. With the arm of Superman pitching the rock faster and faster each time, the curved arc the rock follows gets closer and closer to matching the curvature of the earth, until finally that magic speed is applied at which the match is perfect and the orbit is circular. At that point, the rock essentially is "falling around the earth."

When the satellite is given a velocity greater than is needed for a circular orbit at that altitude, but less than "escape velocity," the orbit becomes elliptical. The speed decreases with distance from earth, then increases again as it returns to the closest point. If the initial velocity is less than needed for orbit at that altitude, the curved path is tighter than the curvature of the earth's surface, and the satellite never achieves orbit.

Ummm, more than you wanted to know, I guess, but I couldn't help it. Now help me here. In the photo I don't see the state lines. Are they too narrow to show from that height?

Someone used an eraser to get rid of them.

I u
 

Can you get a degree from Itunes U?

Absolutely! Just send me a list of completed courses and a $50 processing fee and I'll send you a certificate.:laugh:

Are you SURE about this..? Can you be More Specific...That formula is very impressive to someone who isn't comfortable with math.. Could you put that in more simple terms....ie..break down the formula into words. :look: NB

I can do that......it's MAGIC... Understand now?

It is very cool, indeed. Thanks for sharing. :)

I can see my house! :D

I changed the vantage point. I hope that makes it a bit easier for some folks to spot Winnipesaukee.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h3...psf300bdd9.jpg

I still don't see the mans face with the big nose as mentioned. :rolleye2:

there is a trick to it...
 

You have to use a mirror:laugh:.

You are not the only one. I thought that too when I first located it!

(must be time for a lobster roll)

I agree, but also saying it has a bad right claw.:)

http://i54.tinypic.com/2e56yqf.gif

If I look closely, not only can I see my house, I can now see my boat!

And you really should get that rash on your back looked at. ;);)

Oh you noticed those? That's not a rash, they are bite marks! :blush: