Photo of the Week: Lunar Shadow

From deep space, NASA's EPIC camera aboard NOAA’s space weather-observing DSCOVR satellite captured a unique view of this week's solar eclipse. The shadow of the Moon is visible on the western Pacific Ocean in this full-frame image.

Originally proposed and designed by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego in the 1990s, DSCOVR measures the solar energy reflected back to space by Earth as well as the infrared radiation emitted by the planet. Such observations are essential to determine Earth’s energy budget, which is the fundamental driver of climate.

Launched in February 2015 with a refurbished payload and revised mission, DSCOVR monitors the planet from a stable orbit at the L1 Lagrange Point about 1 million miles from Earth. DSCOVR also monitors the sun to provide advanced warning of geomagnetic storms, which can affect technology and power transmission systems.

NISTAR and geo-located EPIC data are expected to be made public spring of 2016 after validation by the DSCOVR science team, according to NASA.

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