An astronaut onboard the International Space Station (ISS) shot this photograph of the northwestern portion of Noirmoutier, a small tidal island about 20 kilometers (12 miles) long on the western coast of France. Taken at approximately 1:00 p.m. local time, the image highlights exposed mudflats, salt marshes, and sand dunes visible at low tide, as well as the small communities and farms of the island.
Access to Noirmoutier historically required well-timed traversing of the Passage du Gois (out of the frame to the southeast), a causeway linking the island to the mainland. A bridge was constructed in 1971 to permit travel during high tide, which still floods the lowland passage twice a day. Meanwhile, several boats leave white wakes off the north and west side of the island as they travel to and from the deep-water fishing port at L’Herbaudiere.
The exposed mudflats surrounding the island are teeming with shellfish. Oyster aquaculture is widespread in the bay, and several of the associated fish-farming structures stand out along the coast during low tide.
Locals also reap another sort of harvest from the salt marshes. Salt, or “white gold,” is collected from a series of channels and pools as the water evaporates in the summer months.
References & Resources
Astronaut photograph ISS065-E-111745 was acquired on June 12, 2021, with a Nikon D5 digital camera using a focal length of 1150 millimeters. It is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by a member of the Expedition 65 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast, and lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Caption by Laura Phoebus, Jacobs, JETS Contract at NASA-JSC.
