by Mika McKinnon
The Bahamas are simply gorgeous in this latest astronaut photograph from the International Space Station. The delicate ripples on the sandy ocean floor, gentle texture of muddy islands, and clean cuts of deeper ocean channels make this more of an idealized painting than real life.
If astronaut Scott Kelly is going to keep sending home photos like this, he can live on the International Space Station for longer than his one-year mission. It’s not just beautiful; it also contains a myriad of tiny bits of science to observe.
The seafloor ripples along the lower right corner are generated by the swash-backwash of shallow water waves pulling on loose sediments in the daily play of wind waves. Their wavelength is proportional to the wavelength of the surface expression of the wave and the depth of the water as the waves drag more fiercely on the ocean floor in shallower seas.
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