PIX4667638: Etang de la Mer Rouge - Indre - Pond - Etang de la Mer Rouge - France - Solitaire grebe on the pond of the Red Sea in the Brenne Regional Natural Park, one of the most important continental wetlands in France. Grebe in the regional natural park of Brenne, Indre, France / Bridgeman Images
PIX4666140: Hungary seen by satellite - Hungary seen from satellite Envisat - Image obtained by satellite Envisat. This mosaic image focuses on Hungary. Hungary consist of two main regions, a plain around the Danube River in the eastern part of the country, and highlands and mountains that are part of the Carpathian Mountain chain, towards the north / Bridgeman Images
PIX4666168: Ireland seen by satellite Envisat - Ireland satellite view - This mosaic of MERIS (Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer) images shows the country of Ireland (highlighted in dark green) and most of the island of Britain. The island of Ireland is the third - largest island in Europe. It lies on the west side of the Irish Sea and is composed of the Republic of Ireland in the south and Northern Ireland, a region of the United Kingdom. Also visible in the lower right cornerare the English channel and the coastline of Brittany, France. Satellite Envisat / Bridgeman Images
PIX4666179: Volcanic ash cloud over United Kingdom - Volcanic ash cloud above United Kingdom - Volcanic ash cloud caused by the eruption of Eyjafjoell volcano in Iceland seen by Envisat satellite on 15 April 2010. This image, acquired on 15 April 2010 by Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS), shows the vast cloud of volcanic ash sweeping across the UK from the eruption of Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland, more than 1000 km away. The ash, which can be seen as the large grey streak in the image, is drifting from west to east at a height of about 11 km above the surface Earth / Bridgeman Images
PIX4666190: Iceland seen from the satellite ENVISAT - Iceland seen by satellite - Iceland covered with snow on 4 October 2008. This Envisat image, acquired on 4 October, features the island of Iceland covered in the first snow of the 2008 winter. More than 11 percent of the island is covered by glaciers. The Vatnajokull glacier, the largest glacier in Europe, is located in the southeast where the white area is more prominent. Reykjavik, the country's capital, is located in the southwest - slightly inland from the boot - shaped peninsula on the bottom left that extends out into the Atlantic Ocean. Brilliant colours of blue - green are visible swirling in the waters off the south and western coasts. These are caused by large concentrations of phytoplankton, which form the basis of the ocean's food chain and have an essential role in the global ecosystem / Bridgeman Images
PIX4667174: Europe at night - 2012 - Europe by night - 2012 - View of Europe at night consisting of images taken by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012. This image of Europe at night is a composite assembled from data acquired by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012 / Bridgeman Images
PIX4667201: Europe at night - 2012 - Europe by night - 2012 - View of Europe at night consisting of images taken by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012. This image of Europe at night is a composite assembled from data acquired by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012 / Bridgeman Images
PIX4645827: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) - Artist view - The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) - Artist view: The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will replace the Hubble Space Telescope in 2018. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a large, infrared-optimized space telescope scheduled for launch in 2018. Equipped with a large mirror 6.5 meters (21.3 feet) in diameter, it will find the first galaxies that formed in the early Universe, connecting the Big Bang to our own Milky Way Galaxy and will reside in an orbit about 1.5 million km (1 million miles) from the Earth - The shaded side of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) as it may appear later this decade when it is observing from the Earth-Sun L2 point about 930 thousand miles from the Earth. Part of the Milky Way can be seen reflected in the 21-foot diameter mirror assembly. This assembly is composed of 18 hexagonal segments of gold-coated beryllium which combines to create a near-infrared light-collecting area of about 80 square feet (the Hubble Space Telescope has a collecting area of 48 square feet) - The JWST's sensitive optical elements are shaded from the perpetual sunlight via a “” parasol” consisting of multiple spaced layers of polyimide film. These layers act as a passive cooling barrier between the 185* F sunward side and the -388* F shaded side hosting the optics and sensors / Bridgeman Images
PIX4645934: Space telescope TPF - Illustration - Space telescope TPF - Illustration - Space telescope project consists of several telescopes measuring 3 to 4m in diameter observing in infrared and operating in interferometry. The objective of this project is to detect planets outside our solar system, similar to Earth. This interferometer will also be supported by a telescope of 4 to 6m diameter equipped with a coronographer (not shown in this illustration) / Bridgeman Images
PIX4646048: Herschel Satellite - Illustration - Herschel Satellite. Artwork - Artist's view of the European satellite Herschel. The Herschel Space Observatory, scheduled to launch in 2009, will study in the infrared the formation of galaxies, stars and planetary systems. This satellite measures nearly 7 metres high by 4.3 metres wide and weighs 3.25 tonnes. Its telescope has a 3.5-meter mirror, making it the largest mirror ever made for a scientific space mission. Herschel will orbit around Lagrange 2, approximately 1.5 million kilometres from Earth. ESA's Herschel Space Observatory (formerly called Far Infrared and Submillimetre Telescope or FIRST) will solve the mystery of how stars and galaxies were born. Infrared astronomy is as young as it is fruitful. In less than three decades infrared astronomers have unveiled tens of thousands of new galaxies, and have made discoveries as surprising as the huge amounts of water vapour that fill the galaxy. Yet scientists know there is still much more to discover. Objects such as other planetary systems, or processes like the birth of galaxies in the early universe, can best be studied with infrared space telescopes in space. This is the reason for Esa's Herschel. ESA's Herschel Space Observatory will be bigger and better than any of its predecessors. Moreover, it will observe at wavelengths never covered before. It will be located 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth, farther than any previous space telescope. Due for launch in 2009, Herschel is one the Cornerstone missions ESA's Horizons 2000 programme. Herschel is a key project space astronomy in the next millennium / Bridgeman Images
PIX4646096: Mirror of the Herschel satellite - Herschel spacecraft's mirror - Inspection of the mirror of the European Herschel satellite. The Herschel Space Observatory, scheduled to launch in 2009, will study in the infrared the formation of galaxies, stars and planetary systems. This satellite measures nearly 7 metres high by 4.3 metres wide and weighs 3.25 tonnes. Its telescope has a 3.5-meter mirror, making it the largest mirror ever made for a scientific space mission. Herschel will orbit around Lagrange 2, approximately 1.5 million kilometres from Earth. The gigantic telescope of ESA's space - based infrared observatory, Herschel, is being prepared to be assembled with its spacecraft. Herschel's telescope, which will carry the largest mirror ever flown in space, has been delivered to ESA's European Space Research and Technology Centre, ESTEC, where engineers and scientists are busy with the final steps that will prepare the infrared observatory for launch in 2009. ESA's Herschel Space Observatory will observe at wavelengths never covered before. It will be located 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth, farther than any previous space telescope / Bridgeman Images