Algeria - January 3rd, 2010

The Tassili N’Ajjer National Park, in the Tassili N’Ajjer Mountains, is a World Heritage Site in Algeria. It is located on a plateau of outstanding scenic and geological interest (dark brown areas), covered by eroded sandstone forests of rock.

The area is a floristic and faunal island of Sahelian life in the middle of the desert, and harbors a relict Mediterranean cypress, one of the rarest trees in the world. It also has one of the largest and best preserved groupings of prehistoric cave art in the world, an immense gallery of neolithic art of international importance.

The park has a surface area of 8,000,000ha (Biosphere Reserve 7,200,000ha). It is located in the central Sahara in far southeastern Algeria. The northern boundary runs east 440 kilometers (km) from Amguid on the Tamanrasset road via Illizi to the Libyan border. The east and south sides adjoin the Libyan and Nigerien borders for 600km. The southern boundary runs northwest 700km from the Nigerien border to Amguid, bulging in to exclude the sands of Erg d’Admer.

Tags: Africa Algeria Sahara Sahel Tassili N'Ajjer Mountains Tassili n'Ajjer National Park |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

Turkey - January 25th, 2010

Parallel rows of cumulus clouds create a striped pattern over the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov (upper right corner). This phenomenon, known as cloud streets, stretches from the Ukraine in the North to  Turkey in the South. Parts of Russia (upper right), Moldova, Romania and Bulgaria (left side, from above to below) are also visible.

Upon opening the full image, all of Turkey and parts of the Mediterranean Sea are visible. A cloud phenomenon can be observed here as well: ridged or wavelike patterns, known as wave clouds.

Tags: Black Sea Bulgaria Cloud Streets Crimea Mediterranean Sea Moldova Romania Russia Sea of Azov Turkey Ukraine Wave Clouds |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

India - January 26th, 2010

The dark brown area parallel to the coast in this image of central-eastern India is part of the Eastern Ghats, a discontinuous range of mountains along India’s eastern coast.

The Eastern Ghats run from West Bengal state in the north, through Orissa (Odisha) and Andhra Pradesh (both visible here) to Tamil Nadu in the south. The mountain ranges run parallel to the Bay of Bengal.

The Deccan Plateau lies to the west of the range, between the Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats. The coastal plains lies between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal.

A range of low hills lie between the Krishna River (furthest south, near bottom) and the Godavari River (just up the coast from the former), but north of the Godavari the Eastern Ghats increase again in height, forming the boundary between Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.

Tags: Andhra Pradesh Bay of Bengal Deccan Plateau Eastern Ghats Godavari River India Krishna River Odisha Orissa |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

USA - January 2nd, 2010

A massive snow storm fell on the East Coast Friday and Saturday, and some areas have had record snow accumulation totals over the past two days. The East Coast snow storm shut down airports, highways, and transit systems, and left tens of thousands of people without electricity.

Here, snow can be seen covering parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. Offshore is another white phenomenon: the clouds are arranged in parallel lines known as cloud streets.

This snowfall broke many longstanding records. Saturday, a record snowfall total of 16 inches was reported at Washington Dulles airport, which broke an old record of 10.6, set December 12, 1964. Reagan National airport also reported a record breaking snow fall of 13.3 inches Saturday, surpassing the old record of 11.5 inches set on December 17, 1932.

The Philadelphia airport received 22.9 inches in snowfall totals since Friday, and Colora, Maryland received 17.2 inches of snow fall.

The state of New Jersey reported snow fall in the following areas: New Brunswick 11.1 inches, Pottersville 7.8 inches, Cape May 6.2 inches, and Midland Park 5.7 inches. The state of Delaware reported snow fall totals in the following areas (in inches): Blackbird 17.7, New Castle airport 17, Dover 16.2, and in Wilmington 14.

The state of Virginia received more than 20 inches of snow in certain areas of the state and a state of emergency was called on Friday. The state has reported more than 3,000 car accidents and disabled cars since Friday night. A total of five people have died due to the snow storm, three of which were in Virginia.

Tags: Blizzard D.C. Delaware East Coast Maryland New Jersey Pennsylvania Snow USA Virginia Washington |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

Netherlands - January 3rd, 2010

The Dollart is a bay between northern Netherlands and Germany, on the west side of the estuary of the Ems river. The Netherlands and Germany, however, do not agree on the exact course of the border through the bay. Most of it dries at low tide, and it is a feeding ground for many water birds.

The Dollart was likely created between 1219 and 1413, by the rising waterlevel and some floods. Nowadays it’s a paradise for all kinds of birds and other animals that live around water.

The Ems is a river in northwestern Germany and northeastern Netherlands with a total length of 371 kilometers. It runs through the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony and parallels the state border between the Lower Saxon area of East Friesland (Germany) and the province of Groningen (Netherlands), on the German side of the border.

Tags: ASAR Dollart East Friesland Ems River Europe Germany Groningen Holland Lower Saxony Netherlands North Rhine-Westphalia |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

Tropical Cyclone 14P - February 7th, 2010

Enhanced image

Track of TC 14P

Tropical Cyclone 14P, located approximately 540 nautical miles east-northeast of Pago Pago, has tracked east-southeastward at 15 knots over the past six hours. Maximum significant wave height is 11 feet.

Animated multispectral satellite imagery shows improved deep convection over the last 12 hours with divergent outflow aloft. A recent TRMM microwave image, in concert with SSMIS image, shows multiple convective bands starting to wrap into the developing low level circulation center (LLCC).

Despite Dvorak estimates from ranging from 25 to 30 knots, the current intensity of 35 knots is based on the microwave signature and takes into account the small size of the system (perhaps causing erroneously low Dvorak estimates), which is embedded within the well-developed trough.

Over the next 24 to 36 hours, TC 14P will continue to track east-southeastward with the northwesterly flow on the south side of the near equatorial ridge. At the same time, the system will further consolidate and intensify due to the favorable environment.

After TAU 24, a subtropical steering ridge, currently anchored east of 120W, will gradually build westward and cause the system to make a turn toward the South. Around TAU 72, TC 14P will begin to track more westward as it remains equatorward of the subtropical ridge axis. By the end of the forecast period, the system is expected to weaken slightly as the vertical wind shear increases ahead of an approaching mid-latitude trough.

Beyond the extended TAUs, the passing trough may weaken the steering ridge and enable TC 14P to turn poleward. The early model guidance is limited and a bit spread out, though it has consistently pointed to the westward turn over the last three model runs.

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Argentina and Chile - January 25th, 2010

The landscape of Argentina and Chile (far left) shows a greatly varied vegetation index in this FAPAR image. Patagonia appears white to light yellow, indicating a low presence of photosynthesis and vegetation covering.

Green to red areas, on the other hand, indicate a good to high presence of photosynthetic activity and vegetation. Here, such areas are visible in the Pampas, the fertile central plains of Argentina and the source of the country’s agricultural wealth, and central to southern Chile.

Central Chile experiences a Mediterranean climate and dominates in terms of population and agricultural resources, and southern Chile has a rainy temperate climate and is rich in forests and grazing lands.

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Morocco - January 8th, 2010

The fertile lands of the Sous appear as a green area around the tan, sediment laden Sous River, south of the snow-capped Atlas Mountains. By the coast, the Sous spills thick brown sediments into the Atlantic Ocean near Agadir, and other rivermouths can also be seen discharging sediments further to the North.

The Sous (also spelled Souss) is a region in southern Morocco. Geologically, it is the alluvial basin of the Sous River, separated from the Sahara by the mountains of the Atlas Range.

A well irrigated area, this has been one of Morocco’s most fertile regions for centuries. The natural vegetation in the Sous is savanna dominated by the Argan, an endemic tree found nowhere else; part of the area is now a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve to protect this unique habitat.

Tags: Agadir Argan Atlantic Ocean Atlas Mountains Morocco Sediments Sous Region Sous River Souss River |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

Russia - January 26th, 2010

The Angara River is a 1,779 kilometer (1,105 mi) long river that runs across Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai in southeastern Siberia, Russia. It is the only river flowing out of Lake Baikal, and is a headwater of the Yenisei River. Here, the river appears as a white line crossing the snow-dusted Siberian landscape.

Leaving Lake Baikal near the settlement of Listvyanka, the Angara flows north past the Irkutsk Oblast’s cities of Irkutsk, Angarsk, Bratsk, and Ust-Ilimsk. It then turns west, enters the Krasnoyarsk Krai, and falls into the Yenisei near Strelka. Below its junction with the Ilim River the Angara has been known in the past as the Upper Tunguska.

Tags: Angara River Irkutsk Oblast Krasnoyarsk Krai Russia Siberia Upper Tunguska |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment