Source: BBC
Fog on Mars, storms on Jupiter and fiery flares on the Sun – stunning close up images of our nearest planetary neighbours are going on show at London’s Natural History Museum.
What would you see if you travelled to the surface of Mars? Or were able to drift in and out of Saturn’s rings?
A new exhibition – Otherworlds – focuses on the creative work of US-based artist Michael Benson. He mixes art with science – to make crisp, colourful and seamless digital images from data sent back to Earth by Nasa and ESA spacecraft.
The museum’s Poppy Cooper, who helped put the show together, says the 77 images are meant to represent what humans would see if they went to visit those places.
Scroll down and travel deep into the Solar System yourself.
Moonlight on the Adriatic
As seen from the International Space Station, this first image looks back to Earth.
The boot of Italy is clearly visible. The bright lights in the bottom right hand corner is Milan.
Image copyrightMichael BensonThe Adriatic Sea sparkles in the moonlight – although, as Poppy Cooper points out, moonlight is of course reflected sunlight.
Image copyrightMichael BensonMosaic composite photograph. ISS 023 crew, 29 April 2010
Credit: Nasa JSC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Picture, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Typhoon over Bay of Bengal
This immense vortex of Tropical Cyclone 03B slammed into India’s east coast at the end of 2003, with wind speeds approaching 120 kilometres an hour.
Below, the top of the island of Sri Lanka is relatively cloud free.
Image copyrightMichael BensonPhotograph. Terra, 15 December 2003
Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, Lucian Plesea, Modis Land Rapid Response Team/Nasa GSFC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Eclipse of the Sun by Earth
“Incredibly violent, energetic and quite frightening” is how Poppy Cooper describes the next image, which shows giant solar flares leaping out from the surface of the Sun.
The view – based on an ultraviolet exposure taken in space by the Solar Dynamics Observatory – shows the Sun appearing to be in the Earth’s shadow.
The shadow is due to the increased density of the Earth’s atmosphere – from left to right in the image – which blocks UV light.
Image copyrightMichael BensonUltraviolet exposure. Solar Dynamics Observatory, 2 April 2011
Credit: Nasa SDO/Nasa GSFC/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Ground fog in Valles Marineris
It is foggy on Mars.
This next image shows the planet’s Valles Marineris canyon system – which is about as wide as Australia, and at almost 4,000km long, is the largest in the Solar System.
Image copyrightMichael BensonA fog hugs the canyon floor, which is more than 6.5km deep in places – more than three times deeper than the Grand Canyon in the United States.
Image copyrightMichael BensonMosaic composite photograph. Mars Express, 25 May 2004
Credit: ESA/Michael Benson, Kinetikon Pictures, courtesy Flowers Gallery
Global dust storm on Mars
Mars can also bear witness to giant dust storms which can last for months.
This image was put together using data from a Nasa mission in 1977.
Image copyrightMichael Benson“The scale is amazing. It just reminds you how active all these other worlds are,” says Poppy Cooper.
“Our planet is not unique in that respect – other planets are constantly changing and moving.”
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