This image was acquired by the AVHRR sensor of the NOAA-14 satellite on 1997 Nov 17 20:11 UT (2:11 PM CST). It is cloud-free except for a few in the extreme southeastern corner. The light area is snow covered as is evident from the visible surface features. The dark feature at about Long -104, lat 44 is the Black Hills on the western border of South Dakota. They are covered by pine trees which blocks the view of snow on the ground. Long thin strands of snow cover parts of Nebraska and Iowa along the southern edge of the image. The apparent edge of the snow in northern Minnesota shows the tree line, snow is less visible under the pines.