Astronaut Onboard the International Space Station Captured A 50-Mile Ancient Lava Flow in US Desert

An astronaut onboard the International Space Station (ISS) took a sequence of photos of the large ancient basaltic lava flow of Carrizozo Malpaís in central New Mexico. NASA then compiled and combined the photos to produce a mosaic that shows the entirety of the lava flow from thousands of years ago.

Per the NASA Earth Observatory, the photo was taken while the ISS was over the southwestern US in June, but it was not released until late September. The ancient lava flow measures 50 miles (75 kilometers) across the Chihuahuan Desert.

Ancient Lava Flow in Litlle Black Peak

According to the US Geographical Study, the lava flow was from 5,000 years ago when a vent at Little Black Peak erupted and released lava for the next 20 to 30 years. The vent was within the Capitan lineament, which is a zone of crustal weakness where the molten rock was able to rise through the crust.

Little Black Peak is an inactive cinder cone at the end of Carrizozo Malpais, which is the highest point on the larger shield volcano. When the vent erupted, it created the second youngest lava flow in New Mexico and the longest one from the Holocene Epoch, TechEBlog reports.

The scattered lighter areas of the lava flow have different types of lava features, like fissures, collapses, and depressions that do not have lava but can grow prickly pear cactus, perennial flowers, and juniper trees.

Moreover, there is a road that bisects the upper region of the lava flow and a railway that connects to Carrizozo city. Meanwhile, Malpais Spring is located just north of the White Sands Missile Range testing site.

Imaging the Carrizozo Malpaís Lava Flow

NASA Earth Observatory reports that the photograph was acquired by an astronaut aboard the orbiting laboratory on June 30, 2022, using a Nikon D5 digital camera that uses a focal length of 400 millimeters.

The ISS Crew Earth Observations and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center provided the photos taken by a member of the Expedition-67 crew. NASA has cropped and enhanced the photos to improve their contrast and remove the lens artifacts.

The ISS Program supports astronauts onboard the space laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab that aims to help crew members to take photographs of Earth that will inform not only scientists but also the public of what the planet looks like from space. They have made access to the photos free of charge and available on the internet.

NASA/JSC's Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth features more images from space taken by astronauts and cosmonauts while onboard the space station. The caption on the photo of the lava flow was written by Sara Schmidt from the GeoControl Systems in JETS Contract at NASA-JSC.

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