SPACEPHOTOS

Pamlico Sound, the large bay shown here in color infrared, is created by the barrier islands along the east coast of North Carolina. As demonstrated on this southeast-looking view of Cape Hatteras, color infrared film usually provides excellent documentation to discriminate land-water boundaries. Even though this picture is small scale, two definite channels through the sandy barrier islands (Hatteras Inlet southwest of Cape Hatteras and Oregon Inlet north of the Cape) are easily discerned. The eastern end of Lake Mattamuskeeta National Wildlife Refuge is visible as a dark feature near the lower right corner of the image. A southern extension of Albemarle Sound, known as the Alligator Channel (dark feature), is also visible (bottom center). This section of the Albemarle Sound is part of the Intracoastal Waterway. Several large cultivated field patterns (rectangular shapes) can be observed near the lower right corner of the image.