NASA Instrument Sees Disruptive Iceland Volcanic Cloud
A JPL-built instrument on NASA's Aqua spacecraft imaged the ash cloud from an erupting Iceland volcano that's wreaking havoc for air travelers in Northern Europe and around the world.
For the second time this month, Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano  
(pronounced "Aya-fyatla-jo-kutl") erupted.  The latest eruption, on  
Wed., April 14, spewed a cloud of ash into the atmosphere and is  
disrupting air travel in Northern Europe and around the world.The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA's Aqua  
satellite flew over the volcano at 1:30 p.m. local time (13:29:24  
UTC, or 6:29:24 a.m. PDT) on April 15, capturing this false-color  
infrared image, as well as a visible image of the ash plume. The  
images show the ash cloud (in blue) enveloping Iceland and moving  
eastward over the Shetland Islands and onward to Europe. The ash  
clouds appear to be at an altitude of 3,658 meters (12,000 feet).NASA works with other agencies on using satellite observations to  
aid in the detection and monitoring of aviation hazards caused by  
volcanic ash. More information on this NASA program is at: http://science.larc.nasa.gov/asap/research-ash.html . The ingestion of ash particles from such clouds can result in engine failure for aircraft.Because infrared radiation does not penetrate through clouds, AIRS  
infrared images show either the temperature of the cloud tops or the  
surface of Earth in cloud-free regions. The lowest temperatures (in  
purple) are associated with high, cold cloud tops. In cloud-free  
areas the AIRS instrument will receive the infrared radiation from  
the surface of the Earth, resulting in the warmest temperatures  
(orange/red).