Strait of Messina, Italy
SAR Orbit number: 48673
11 August 2004
Description:
 This Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) multitemporal
colour composite image is centred over the Strait of Messina that separates the
Calabria region of southern Italy from Sicily, the largest island in the
Mediterranean Sea. At its narrowest point the Strait is 3km wide while further
south its width reaches 15km. The image shows the main towns of the Strait:
Messina, on the Sicilian side, and Reggio-Calabria, on the Calabrian side and
the two mountain chains that form the immediate backdrop to the Strait: the
Monti Peloritani in Sicily and the Aspromonte in Calabria. Visible are also the
sea currents, whirlpools, and winds of the strait (the different colours in the
area indicate wind causing sea surface roughness on the date of acquisition).
The image is composed of three ERS-2 SAR PRI (Precision Radar Image) images
acquired on different dates and assigning a colour (RGB) to each date of
acquisition.
Technical Information:
- Instrument: Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)
- Dates of Acquisition: Red: 13 February 2002, Green: 11 August 2004, Blue:
05 May 1999
- Orbit numbers: 35647, 48673, 21118
- Frame: 2835
- Instrument features: 25 meter resolution
- Coordinates:
NE Lat/Long: N 38.59 / E 16.15
NW Lat/Long: N 38.77 / E 15.05
SE Lat/Long: N 37.70 / E 15.90
SW Lat/Long: N 37.88 / E 14.81
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