File:Mawson and Ingrid Christensen Coasts, Antarctica (MODIS 2015-11-21).jpg

English: As spring advances in the Antarctic the lengthening sunlight days brings rising temperatures, melting sea ice and the long sunlight hours give extended, excellent views of the region from space. On November 11, 2015, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA�s Terra satellite captured this true-color image of the Mawson and Ingrid Christensen Coasts. The reflectivity of snow and ice is very high while the ocean water absorbs sunlight so the ocean water appears nearly black next to the bright white of snow and ice. In the south, the coasts are covered with snow and ice and similarly-bright �fast� ice clings to the coastline. Icebergs float in the waters near the coast and are surrounded by dark ocean waters, suggesting that they are free-floating. Further away from shore thin filigrees of white mark thinner sea ice. Some ice appears faintly blue. This is ice that has absorbed some water as it begins to melt. In the northwest and northeast sections of the image cloud banks overly the sea ice. Their color is similar to ice but the pattern is typical of clouds.