The island of Hokkaidō is located at the north end of Japan, near Russia. The center of the island has a number of mountains and volcanic plateaus, and there are coastal plains in all directions.
Of particular note in this image is the interesting grid-like pattern of fields, criss-crossed diagonally by streams and rivers, on the northeast end of the island, part of the Nemuro Subprefecture.
Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a small landlocked country, the sixth smallest nation in Europe. It is visible here in the center of this orthorectified ASAR (radar) image, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain (below) and France (above).
Due to its location in the eastern Pyrenees mountain range, Andorra consists predominantly of rugged mountains of an average height of 1,996 metres (6,549 ft) with the highest being the Coma Pedrosa at 2,946 metres (9,665 ft).
These are dissected by three narrow valleys in a Y shape that combine into one as the main stream, the Valira River, leaves the country for Spain (at Andorra’s lowest point of 870 m/2,854 ft). Andorra’s surface area is 468 square kilometres (181 sq mi).
The entire coastline of the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro is visible here. Areas of note include the city of Rio de Janeiro and sediments from the Paraíba do Sul River, which tinge an area of shoreline green and yellow.
In the close-ups of these areas, several fires are blazing: one north of Rio de Janeiro and two north of Lago Feia, the large dark brown lake near the sediment-framed coastline.
To the north, above the coastal area surrounded by sediments, is the state of Espírito Santo. Inland, part of the state of Minas Gerais can be seen, including the city of Belo Horizonte (see final close-up).
The landscape of Djibouti, a country in the Horn of Africa, can be seen in detail in this orthorectified ASAR (radar) image. Djibouti is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The bodies of water visible here on the right are Lake Ghoubet and the Gulf of Tadjoura, which provides the entrance to the Red Sea. Most of its coastline is the territory of Djibouti, except for a short stretch on the southern shore which is part of the territory of Somalia.
Djibouti’s size is just over 23,000 square kilometres (8,900 sq mi), and it has 314 km (195 mi) of coastline. Its climate is mostly warm, dry desert.
The country’s landscape is mainly a stony desert, with scattered plateaus and highlands. Mountains in the center of the country separate a coastal plain and a plateau. Two volcanoes are visible in the upper left quadrant, one in Djibouti, the other to the left just over the Ethiopia border.
Fires continue to burn near the Lena Delta and the Laptev Sea in Siberia, in Russia’s Sakha Republic (click here for previous article). The Siberian fire season generally begins towards the end of June, so the two blazes here, in the lower left quadrant, are not out of the ordinary.
However, deforestation from fires in Siberia and the rest of the taiga biome has been increasing greatly. This is due to global warming and lack of funding to fight the fires, reports the BBC, and is putting the biome’s conifer forests at risk.
This orthorectified ASAR (radar) image shows two geographical divisions of California, USA: the South Coast Ranges and the Central Valley.
The South Coast Ranges run north and south, parallel to the Pacific Coast, between San Francisco Bay to the north, the California Central Valley to the east, the Transverse Ranges to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west.
Much of the Central Valley is used for agriculture, although many populated areas are also visible. The bright white patch in the center, surrounded by farmland, is the city of Stockton. In and around Stockton are thousands of miles of waterways and rivers that make up the California Delta.
One important body of water visible here, at the upper left, is Suisun Bay, a shallow tidal estuary. It lies at the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, thus forming the entrance to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, an inverted river delta.
A large agricultural area stretches along the state borders of Bahia (right) and Tocantins (upper left) and Goais (lower left), in Brazil. Several fires, probably agricultural in nature, are visible amongst the fields in the close-up.
These fields are located within the state of Bahia, on an 800 to 1000 meter high plateau. A 200 meter dropoff marks the end of the plateau and the border with Tocantins and Goais, which have an altitude of 600 meter or lower.
The River Po runs in a wavy black line across the top edge of this orthorectified, projected ASAR image of northern Italy.
Below, another straighter, lighter line bisects the image: the motorway connecting four Italian cities. These populated areas appear as rounded white patches, and are, from left to right, Parma, Reggio nell’Emilia, Modena and Bologna.
South of those cities are the peaks of the Apennines, occupying most of the lower half of the image. In the full image, the cities of Prato (center right) and Pistoia (center left) are visible at the bottom edge, at the foot of the range.
A plume of dust originating from Australia’s dry interior, reaches over New South Wales and off the east coast.
The plume is thickest between Sydney (below) and Newcastle (above), although shorter, wispier plumes are also present as far north as the border with the state of Queensland.
The close-up focuses on the large plume stretching far out over the Pacific Ocean. Ripples, like waves of dust, make it possible to see the air currents.
A dust storm blows particles from Afghanistan into Pakistan. Two main plumes of dust are visible sweeping over the border in an southeasterly arch.
The close-up focuses on the main plumes, showing the movement of the dust particles as they are carried by strong air currents.
Upon opening the full image, dust can also be seen blowing to the northeast over the coast of Oman (below).
This orthorectified ASAR (radar) image shows Mount Shasta, a 14,179-foot (4,322 m) stratovolcano that is the second-highest peak in the Cascade Range and the fifth highest peak in California. It is a member of the Cascade Volcanic Arc and is located in Siskiyou County.
Mount Shasta is not connected to any nearby mountain; as can be seen here, it rises abruptly from miles of level ground which encircle it, standing nearly 10,000 feet (3,000 m) above the surrounding area.
Mount Shasta has an estimated volume of 108 cubic miles (450 km3), making it the most voluminous stratovolcano in the Cascades.
The mountain consists of four overlapping volcanic cones which have built a complex shape, including the main summit and the prominent satellite cone of 12,330-foot (3,760 m) Shastina, which has a visibly conical form. If Shastina were a separate mountain, it would rank as the third-highest peak of the Cascade Range.
Mount Shasta’s surface is relatively free of deep glacial erosion except, paradoxically, for its south side where Sargents Ridge runs parallel to the U-shaped Avalanche Gulch. This is the largest glacial valley on the volcano, although it does not presently have a glacier in it.
A large dust storm reaches from Saudi Arabia to the Iraq-Iran border, covering much of Iraq including the capital, Baghdad.
The close-up focuses on an area in central Iraq. The Tigris (above) and Euphrates (below) Rivers, Lake Buhayrat ath Tharthar (center) and Lake Milh (bottom right) are partially visible. The city of Baghdad, east of the lakes, cannot be seen beneath the thick veil of dust.
The storm forced the closure of Baghdad’s airport due to poor visibility and thus caused a one-day postponement of Iraq’s historic oil development auction - the opening of bids entered by foreign oil companies (for the first time since the nationalization of the industry over 30 years ago) hoping to develop the country’s large oil reserves.
Indian officials say that monsoon rains in the country are likely to be “below normal” triggering off fears about crop failure and high food prices, reports the BBC. A heat wave is sweeping the country and rains, which usually last from June to September, are delayed in many parts.
Forecasters say that rainfall is likely to be lower than predicted in April, when they said it would be near normal. The Hindustan Times said that in at least eight states, monsoon rains so far had been 60 to 90% below normal.
Northwest India appears to be worst affected by the slow rains, with only 81% rains forecast. This image focuses on an area of northern India, below Tibet (top edge) and Nepal and the Himalayas.
However, the government says there is no need for panic, and that heavy rains in July are likely to avert a drought.
Monsoon rains are critical to India’s farm prospects, which account for a sixth of economic output. Up to 70% of Indians are dependent on farm incomes, and about 60% of India’s farms depend on rains.
The summer rains are crucial to crops such as rice, soybean, sugarcane and cotton. Economists agree that the delay will cause further stress in a country where food prices are already high.
The waters of Lake Victoria appear mostly dark blue, with the exception of one area that is green and tan from sediments. This section is Winam Gulf, a significant extension of northeastern Lake Victoria into western Kenya.
Formerly known as Kavirondo Gulf, Nyanza Gulf, and Lake Nyanza Gulf, it is a shallow inlet and is connected to the main lake by the 3 mile wide Rusinga Channel, which is partly masked from the main body of the lake by islands.
The port of Kisumu, Kenya’s fourth largest city, stands on its northeastern shore. The gulf has an average width of 16 mi (25 km) & extends for 40 miles (64 km) from Kisumu to the channel.
The Bering Strait, approximately 53 miles (85 km) wide, separates Russia’s Chukotka Autonomous Okrug from Alaska, USA. It connects the Arctic and Pacific Oceans by joining the Chukchi Sea (part of the former) and the Bering Sea (part of the latter).
Much of the snow that was covering the Russian and Alaskan terrain about six weeks ago (click here for previous article) has melted. Also, the strait is now clear of icebergs from melting sea ice.
Clusters of white dots along the coastlines of Spain (above) and Morocco (below) indicate the locations of populated or industrial areas, while other white dots in the Strait of Gibraltar (center) mark the presence of ships.
The bright white area at the lower left of this orthorectified ASAR (radar) image is the port city of Tangiers, Morocco, while that at the lower right is the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
Across the strait, Spanish cities such as Algeciras and La Línea de la Concepción are visible in the upper right quadrant, with Tarifa visible in the center of the image. The bright white peninsula on the coastline, just south of La Línea, is the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar.
The Lena River runs horizontally across the left side of this image, forming an immense delta by its mouth in Sakha Republic, in the far north of eastern Siberia, Russia. The Lena empties into the Laptev Sea, which is mostly covered in ice, here.
Much of the delta is protected as the Lena Delta Wildlife Reserve, a scientific nature reserve with a total land area of 61,000 square kilometres (23,552 sq mi), making it the largest protected area in Russia.
The delta itself has a size of about 30,000 square kilometres (11,583 sq mi), making it one of the largest of the world. It protects large concentrations of birds, including swans, geese and ducks, loons, shorebirds, raptors and gulls. It is also an important fish spawning site.
The Caprivi Strip cuts horizontally in from the left and across the central band of this image, ending to the right of the center. It is bordered by the Okavango, Cuando, Chobe and Zambezi rivers. The area is rich in wildlife and has mineral resources.
The strip is a narrow protrusion of Namibia eastwards about 450 km (280 miles), between Botswana on the south, Angola and Zambia to the north, and Okavango Region to the west.
As such, the area has been nicknamed Africa’s “Four Corners”. The site of this quadruple frontier is by the swamp located slightly northeast of the center.
The Araguaia River, visible as a vertical tan line on the right side of this image, is one of the major rivers of Brazil, and the principal tributary of the Tocantins. It has a total length of approximately 2,627 km.
Along its course, the river forms the border between the Brazilian federal states of Goiás, Mato Grosso, Tocantins and Pará. Here, most of the land visible is in Mato Grosso, west of the river, and Tocantins, east of the river.
The dark green and brown land around the Araguaia is a protected area for indigenous peoples, part of the Parque Indigena do Araguaia. On the far left, the dark green area of rainforest is also a protected national park, the Parque Nacional Xingu.
The parks were created with the twin objectives of protecting the environment and the indigenous populations of the area.
The land in the center of the image, however, is not protected and has been deforested and exploited for agriculture and grazing.
Constanţa is the second largest and also the oldest living city in Romania, founded around 600 BC. The city is located in the Dobruja region of Romania, on the Black Sea coast, with a beach length of 13 km.
The Port of Constanţa has an area of 39.26 km² and a length of about 30 km, it is the largest port on the Black Sea, and the fourth largest port in Europe.
Here, ships can be seen as white dots on the Black Sea, moving to and from the port. The city itself is bright white, while most of the surrounding land is used for agriculture.
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