For Valentine’s Day, the European Space Agency (ESA) released a stunning image of a heart-shaped lake on Mount St Helens in Washington state, USA. The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission captured the feature using its 10m resolution camera.
Mount St Helens is an active volcano that erupted on May 18, 1980, causing widespread destruction and loss of life. The eruption led to a massive landslide, which raised the lake’s surface level by 60 meters and reshaped its basin. Thousands of trees were displaced into the lake, forming a dense floating log mat.
The ESA image shows Spirit Lake, surrounded by snow-covered mountains, with areas of land cleared for timber processing visible in the background. The heart-shaped feature at the center is actually a natural formation created by the combination of geological events.
ESA’s Sentinel-2 mission provides valuable insights into Earth’s environment and helps monitor changes taking place on our planet. Satellites like this one systematically image and measure changes, both natural and linked to human activity, to protect our planet and its inhabitants.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission is part of the ESA’s efforts to explore space and understand the universe. With missions like this, the agency continues to deliver amazing views of Earth and shed light on unique environments, such as Mount St Helens.
Source: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2025/02/Earth_from_Space_Heart_of_Mount_St_Helens