June 25th, 2012 Category: Image of the day, Mountains

Black Sea - December 26th, 2011

Visible near the shores of the Black Sea in this wide-swath ASAR image of the country of Georgia are two large ridges of mountains: the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range (above) forms the northern border of Georgia, while the southern portion of the country is bounded by the Lesser Caucasus Mountains (below). The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range is much higher in elevation than the Lesser Caucasus Mountains, with the highest peaks rising more than 5,000 meters (16,404 ft) above sea level.

Tags: Black Sea Georgia Greater Caucasus Mountains Lesser Caucasus Mountains | Comments |

June 21st, 2012 Category: Mountains

China - January 9th, 2012

This wide-swath ASAR image shows Hainan (below, right), the smallest province of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The name “Hainan” also refers to Hainan Island, the main island of the province. Hainan is located in the South China Sea, separated from Guangdong’s Leizhou Peninsula to the north by the shallow and narrow Qiongzhou Strait. The size of Hainan Island (32,900 km2 (12,700 sq mi) constitutes 97% of the entire province. To the west of Hainan Island is the Gulf of Tonkin. Wuzhi Mountain (1,840 m) is the highest mountain on the island.

Tags: China Gulf of Tonkin Hainan Hainan Island Leizhou Peninsula Qiongzhou Strait Wuzhi Mountain | Comments |

June 20th, 2012 Category: Mountains

Malay Peninsula - January 6th, 2012

This wide-swath ASAR image shows the Malay Peninsula (or Thai-Malay Peninsula), a peninsula in Southeast Asia (visible in its entirety in the full image). The land mass runs approximately north-south and, at its terminus, is the southern-most point of the Asian mainland. The area contains the southernmost tip of Burma, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, and Southern Thailand.

The image shows the ridges and contours of the Titiwangsa Mountains, part of the Tenasserim Hills system, that form the backbone of the Peninsula. They form the southernmost section of the central cordillera which runs from Tibet through the Kra Isthmus (the Peninsula’s narrowest point) into the Malay peninsula.

Tags: Malay Peninsula Malaysia Orthorectification Tenasserim Hills Thailand Titiwangsa Mountains Wide-swath ASAR | Comments |

June 20th, 2012 Category: Image of the day, Lakes, Volcanoes

Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda - January 9th, 2012

This wide-swath ASAR image shows volcanic features around Lake Kivu, one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift.

Visible as a bright white area on the northern shores of the lake, are the cities of Goma, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Gisenyi, in Rwandu. Goma lies only 18 km due south of the crater of the active Nyiragongo Volcano.

Mount Nyiragongo is a stratovolcano in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Albertine Rift. It is located inside Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The main crater is about two km wide and usually contains a lava lake.

Tags: Albertine Rift Democratic Republic of the Congo East African Rift Lake Kivu Mount Nyiragongo Nyiragongo Volcano Rwanda Virunga Mountains Virunga National Park | Comments |