Norwegian Sea - MERIS - 22 March 2002

This MERIS image provides a beautiful view of the Norwegian Sea as a low-pressure system passes by. The low incident angle of the Sun at the beginning of spring offers an extraordinary relief to the cloud layer.

At the very top of the image, the ice sheet is breaking apart into pieces. Through the thin layer of clouds, upper right of the image, is Norway’s Svalbard Archipelago, composed of four main islands and approximately 150 smaller ones. At bottom right, Troms Island in northern Norway is visible.

Technical Information:
Instrument: MEdium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS)
Date of Acquisition: 22 March 2002
Orbit number: 306
Instrument features: Full resolution image (300-meter resolution)