September 19th, 2011 Category: Image of the day, Lakes

Africa - August 12th, 2011

Several African lakes can be observed in this image. Stretching diagonally across the upper left quadrant is Lake Tanganyika, shared by Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Tanzania and Zambia. Smoke from wildfires causes the area west of the lake to appear hazy.

East of the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika is Lake Rukwa, in Tanzania, with a mustard color due to sediments. West of the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika are Lakes Mweru Wantipa, in Zambia, and Lake Mweru (the larger of the two), shared by Zambia and the DRC. On the right side of the image is Lake Malawi.

Tags: Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo Lake Malawi Lake Mweru Lake Mweru Wantipa Lake Rukwa Lake Tanganyika Tanzania Zambia | Comments |

April 22nd, 2011 Category: Lakes, Wetlands

Tanzania and Zambia - April 15th, 2011

Three lakes can be observed across the top of this image: (from right to left) Lake Rukwa, in Tanzania, Lake Tanganyika, shared by Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Tanzania and Zambia, Lake Mweru Wantipa, in Zambia, and Lake Mweru, shared by Zambia and the DRC.

Sediments give Lake Rukwa a tan color, while Lake Tanganyika appears blue and Lakes Mweru Wantipa and Mweru look greenish-blue.

Visible by the bottom of the image is Lake Bangweulu, the Bangweulu Swamps and the Bangweulu Flats or floodplain. Situated in the upper Congo River basin in Zambia, the Bangweulu system covers an almost completely flat area roughly the size of Connecticut or East Anglia, at an elevation of 1,140 m straddling Zambia’s Luapula Province and Northern Province.

Tags: Bangweulu Swamps Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo DRC Lake Bangweulu Lake Mweru Lake Mweru Wantipa Lake Rukwa Lake Tanganyika Tanzania Zambia | Comments |

September 9th, 2009 Category: Lakes

Central Africa - June 21st, 2009

The brownish green landscape of Central Africa is interrupted by several lakes. Lake Tanganyika is the largest, shared by Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (left), Tanzania (upper right quadrant) and Zambia (lower central section). Most of the lake is possessed by Tanzania and the DRC.

Lake Rukwa, in Tanzania, can be seen east of Lake Tanganyika. Its waters, which have an average depth of only four meters, appear golden brown. The water level varies greatly with the seasons: Lake Rukwa often splits into two individual bodies of water, separated by a huge plain of marsh and swampland.

The two lakes south of Tanganyika are the dark blue Lake Mweru, on the border of Zambia and the DRC, and the similarly named Mweru Wantipa, whose waters are a reddish burgundy color. In the local dialect, “wa ntipa” means “with mud”; its name therefore distinguishes it from its bigger neighbour Mweru, whose waters are clearer.

West of Lake Mweru, near the left border, is the Upemba Depression. This area contains over fifty lakes, the largest of which is called Lake Upemba.

Finally, Lake Bangweulu and the Bangweulu Wetlands can be seen in Zambia, towards the bottom edge of the image.

Tags: Bangweulu Wetlands Democratic Republic of the Congo DRC Lake Bangweulu Lake Mweru Lake Mweru Wantipa Lake Rukwa Lake Tanganyika Lake Upemba Tanzania Upemba Depression Zambia | Comments |