April 27th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Japan - January 14th, 2012

Visible in the lower left quadrant of this orthorectified image is Hakata Bay, located in the northwestern part of Fukuoka city, on the Japanese island of Kyūshū. It faces the Tsushima Strait, and features beaches and a port, though parts of the bay have been reclaimed in the expansion of the city of Fukuoka. The Bay is defined by Shoal Umi-no-nakamichi and Tombolo Shika-no-shima (Shika Island) to the north, and Genkai-jima (Genkai Island) to the northwest, and the Itoshima Peninsula to the west.

The bay is roughly 10 km from north to south, and 20 km from east to west, covering an area of roughly 133 km². The coastline stretches 128 km. The mouth of the bay is only 7.7 km wide, shielding it to a great extent from the waves of the Strait. The bay is only 10 metres deep on average, 23 m at its deepest point, though the tides bring a two metre change in the water level. Set routes are used, therefore, through the bay, to protect ships’ drafts. Several ships can be observed in the bay upon opening the full image, appearing as small white dots.

Tags: ASAR Fukuoka Genkai Island Hakata Bay Itoshima Peninsula Japan Kyushu Orthorectification Shika Island Ships | | Leave a comment

April 23rd, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Andaman Islands - April 14th, 2012

The Andaman Archipelago is an oceanic continuation of the Burmese Arakan Yoma range in the North and of the Indonesian Archipelago in the South. It includes some two hundred islands in the Bay of Bengal, with the Andaman Sea to the east between the islands and the coast of Myanmar.

The natural vegetation of the Andamans is tropical forest with mangroves on the coast. Most of the forests are evergreen but there are areas of deciduous forest on North Andaman, Middle Andaman, Baratang and parts of South Andaman Island. The rainforests of the islands are similar in composition to those of the west coast of Myanmar and are largely unspoilt despite logging and the demands of the fast-growing population driven by immigration from the Indian mainland.

Tags: Andaman Archipelago Andaman Islands Bay of Bengal | | Leave a comment

April 22nd, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Estonia - January 4th, 2012

Visible in the upper part of this wide-swath ASAR image is the Gulf of Finland, the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. Visible on opposite sides of the gulf are Helsinki, Finland (northern shores, near the top edge) and Tallinn, Estonia (southern shores, parallel to Helsinki).

Visible to the south of Tallinn is the Gulf of Riga, a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia. The area of the Gulf of Riga is about 18,000 km². The maximum depth is 67 m. The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The city of Riga can be viewed near the gulf’s southern shores.

Tags: Estonia Finland Gulf of Finland Gulf of Riga Helsinki Riga Tallinn Wide-swath ASAR | | Leave a comment

March 19th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Brazil - December 24th, 2011

Brazil’s two largest cities, São Paolo and Rio de Janeiro, can be observed near the coast in this image of the southeastern part of the country. Rio de Janeiro is located across from the city of Niterói, both on the shores of Guanabara Bay.

São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and America, and the world’s sixth largest city by population, as one might suppose from the expansive area it covers here, grey in contrast to the surrounding green landscape.

Tags: Brazil Guanabara Bay Niteroi Rio de Janeiro São Paolo | | Leave a comment

March 7th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Indonesia - January 4th, 2012

This orthorectified wide-swath ASAR image shows some of the 272 islands of the Natuna Islands archipelago, located in the Natuna Sea (a section of the South China Sea) in the larger Tudjuh Archipelago, off the northwest coast of Borneo. The islands are administratively part of the Riau Islands province of Indonesia.

The Natuna islands are divided into three groups: North Natuna, which includes Laut Island (Pulau Laut); Middle Natuna, which includes Natuna Besar; and South Natuna, which includes Subi Besar.  This image focuses on Natuna Besar (or Great Natuna), the main island of the Natuna Besar Archipelago, as well as the Natuna Islands. The area of Natuna Besar is 1720 km².

Tags: Indonesia Natuna Besar Natuna Islands Natuna Sea Riau Islands Province South China Sea Wide-swath ASAR | | Leave a comment

February 29th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

USA - December 23rd, 2011

 This orthorectified wide-swath ASAR image shows part of northeastern USA, including the state of Massachusetts. Boston, the state capital, appears as a white area on the right towards the center of the coastline. Massachusetts is the 7th smallest state in the United States, with an area of 10,555 square miles (27,340 km2). It is bordered on the north by New Hampshire and Vermont, on the west by New York, on the south by Connecticut and Rhode Island, and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean. It is the most populous New England state.

Massachusetts is called “the Bay State” because of several large bays, which distinctly shape its coast: Massachusetts Bay and Cape Cod Bay, to the east, and Buzzards Bay, to the south. A few cities and towns on the Massachusetts–Rhode Island border are adjacent to Narragansett Bay. At the southeastern corner of the state is a large, sandy, arm-shaped peninsula, Cape Cod. The islands Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket lie south of Cape Cod, across Nantucket Sound.

Boston is the largest city, at the inmost point of Massachusetts Bay, the mouth of the Charles River, the longest river entirely within Massachusetts. Most Bay Staters live in the Boston area, which cover most of eastern Massachusetts. Eastern Massachusetts is fairly densely populated and mostly suburban. Western Massachusetts is more rural and sparsely populated, especially in the Berkshires, the branch of the Appalachian Mountains that dominates the western quarter of the state. The most populous part of western Massachusetts is the Pioneer Valley, straddling the Connecticut River, which flows across Western Massachusetts from north to south.

Tags: Boston Cape Cod Bay Connecticut Martha's Vineyard Massachusetts Massachusetts Bay Nantucket New York Rhode Island USA | | Leave a comment

February 20th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Sweden and Finland - December 29th, 2011

This orthorectified wide-swath ASAR image shows the Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (Swedish: Bottenviken, Finnish: Perämeri), the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia. Its northernmost point is situated in Töre. The bay is bounded by Finland to the east, Sweden to the west, and the Kvarken sound to the south. The maximum depth of the bay is 482 feet (147 m). The bay has the highest rate of rising of land by post-glacial rebound in the Baltic Sea.

The Gulf of Bothnia (Finnish: Pohjanlahti; Swedish: Bottniska viken) is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It is situated between Finland’s west coast and Sweden’s east coast. The gulf is 725 km (450 mi) long, 80–240 km (50-150 mi) wide and has an average depth of 60 m (200 ft, 33 fathoms). The maximum depth is 295 m (965 ft, 161 fathoms). The surface area is 117,000 km² (45,200 sq mi).

Tags: Bothnian Bay Finland Gulf of Bothnia Sweden Wide-swath ASAR | | Leave a comment

February 17th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Cyprus - February 4th, 2012

This orthorectified wide-swath ASAR image shows the island nation of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey and west of Syria and Lebanon. The lighter streaks in the sea off the coast of Syria show the movement of water, flowing westward off the Syrian coast.

Several cities appear as white areas in the image. Of note are Damascus, the capital of Syria, visible towards the bottom right corner, Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, visible along the coast to the northwest of Damascus, and Limassol, the second largest city in Cyprus, visible along the southern coast of the country.

Tags: Beirut Cyprus Damascus Lebanon Limassol Syria Turkey | | Leave a comment

February 12th, 2012 Category: Snapshots

Venezuela - January 3rd, 2012

This orthorectified wide-swath ASAR image shows the Gulf of Paria (Golfo de Paria in Spanish), a 7,800 km2 (3,000 sq mi) shallow inland sea between the island of Trinidad (Republic of Trinidad and Tobago) and the east coast of Venezuela. This sheltered body of water is considered to be one of the best natural harbours on the Atlantic coast of the Americas.

The Gulf of Paria is connected to the Caribbean Sea to the north through the Bocas del Dragón (or Dragons’ Mouth) between the Paria Peninsula of Venezuela and the Chaguaramas Peninsula, and to the Columbus Channel to the south through the Boca del Serpiente (Serpent’s Mouth) between the Cedros Peninsula and the Orinoco Delta.

The Gulf of Paria is a brackish water body – wet season salinities are below 23 ppt (parts per thousand). The extensive mangroves along the Venezuelan and Trinidadian coastlines are important wildlife habitat and probably play a crucial role in regional fisheries. The Gulf itself is an important fishery. Major ports include the Port of Port of Spain and the Port of Point Lisas in Trinidad and the Port of Pedernales in Venezuela.

Tags: Chaguaramas Peninsula Paria Peninsula Trinidad and Tobago Venezuela Wide-swath ASAR | | Leave a comment