Earth From Space — The Art of Landsat

From the Wall Street Journal:

"For the past four decades, Landsat satellites have taken continuous digital images of the planet. Collected and distributed by the U.S. Geological Survey, the images are free to researchers for studies on subjects like agriculture, forestry and land use. Sometimes it just happens that they look a lot like art."

"A selection was on display in 'Earth as Art 3,' at the Library of Congress through May 31, 2012. The vivid colors — purple deserts, red-hued rocks — aren't always true to life."

"The information relayed from outer space contains multiple layers of data along the spectrum of visible and invisible light. There are many options for color coding, and different wavelengths are used for different types of studies — to emphasize, say, the amount of moisture in plants or organic matter in soil."

Kenneth was right: It really is all about the frequency.

View all 40 images — accompanied by detailed captions — in high resolution here.

My tax dollars at work?

 

down wit dat