• Two graphics of the Yucatan Peninsula side by side. The lefthand graphic is black and white, showing a cloud of white over the Southern part of the peninsula. The righthand graphic has colors, with a deep red over the southern part of the peninsula and a deep blue across the rest.
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    Sensors on the NOAA-6 meteorological satellite gathered data to produce images of the ash plume from the 1983 eruption of the Mexican volcano El Chichon. On the left is a scene in visible light. The view on the right is thermal infrared. Red represents cooler temperatures and blue indicates warmer areas. The main section of the ash plume is relatively cool because it has been ejected high into the atmosphere where temperatures are very cold. This plume reached heights in excess of 17 kilometers (about 11 miles).

  • Two graphics of the Yucatan Peninsula side by side. The lefthand graphic is black and white, showing a cloud of white over the Southern part of the peninsula. The righthand graphic has colors, with a deep red over the southern part of the peninsula and a deep blue across the rest.

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National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, NOAA

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NOAA

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