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Interesting Enviro Areas |
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Environmental processes can be viewed from
spacecraft circling the globe or from spacecraft in geosyncronous orbits. The
areas which can be photographed are interesting. You may find images of your
favorite enviromental process.
Some examples: |
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STS085-709-039 Williston Lake,
Canadian Rocky Mountains
of British Columbia, Canada August 1997
The elongated, blue-looking feature
in the center of the image is Williston Lake, British Columbia. Lighter-colored
rivers flow into the lake from the surrounding valleys. Forest clear cuts are
apparent as light green patches on the slopes of the mountains and in some of
the valleys. Most of the mountain valleys and slopes are covered by dark
forests, but the mountain tops are above the tree line and appear gray. Bright,
white clouds cover some of the mountain tops.
STS068-170-55B Kamloops Area, British Columbia, Canada
October 1994
"Kamloops Lake is the elongated reservoir (dark feature) just
west of the city (upper right). As the pock-marked mountainous landscape shows,
Kamloops is a major service center for the vast lumbering industry that is
active in British Columbia. In addition to the clear cut areas on the mountain
slopes, much of the valley in the vicinity of Kamloops shows evidence (lighter,
tannish looking areas) of mining operations (mainly gold and copper). The thin,
linear, light colored features are powerline right of ways and roads."
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STS007-03-0058 Betsiboka River Delta, Madagascar June 1983
Dramatic evidence of the catastrophic erosion of northwestern Madagascar is
revealed in this near-vertical, June 1983 photograph of the rapidly expanding
Betsiboka River Delta. The removal of the native forest for cultivation and
pastureland during the past 50 years has led to massive annual soil losses
approaching 112 tons per acre (250 metric tons per hectare) in some regions of
the island, the largest amount recorded anywhere in the world. The photograph
provides convincing evidence of the result of this process, as the effects of
water erosion are seen throughout the 1544-square-mile (4000-square-kilometer)
land surface area of the photograph.
STS061-098-005 Southern Madagascar December 1993
Almost
two-thirds of Madagascar, the world’s fourth largest island, is seen in
this near-vertical, almost cloud-free photograph. The dark north-south line
that parallels the east coast shows the remaining 10 percent of the
original lowland and mountain rain forests that exist on Madagascar.
The major cause of the dramatic decrease in forests has been the slash-and-burn
agriculture practiced by small-scale farmers. The future will determine if
imposed conservation strategies will be effective in reversing this destructive
practice. Major soil erosion problems are common throughout most of the island,
particularly along the western edge of the country where many of the
westward-flowing rivers carry large quantities of sediment into the bays and
estuaries.
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STS61A-37-0076 Brunei Bay, Malaysia November 1985
This
near-vertical photograph of the southwest coast of Sabah Province on the island
of Borneo within the country of Malaysia vividly shows a huge sediment plume in
the northeast corner of Brunei Bay, with smaller plumes entering from the
south. The plume results from cutting rain forests and losing top soil with
subsequent rains, a cycle that creates massive environmental damage in the
former rain forest area. The course of the meandering, silt-laden Padas River
can be traced into the interior as it passes through the remaining rain forest
and the Crocker Mountain Range. The town of Beaufort is situated along the
Padas River at the intersection of three highways. Numerous trails and roads
(probably logging roads) are scattered throughout the eastern half of the
photograph. Most of the land north of the large sediment plume is marsh and
swampland; very little development appears in progress. Major highways help
identify higher ground, especially along the coastal area. Inland from the
smaller plumes, light green landscapes show no vegetation; perhaps plantations
are being established.
STS073-739-033 Cephalonia (Kefallinia) Island, Ionian
Islands October 1995
"Cephalonia (Kefallinia), the largest (750 square
kilometers) and most mountainous of Greece’s Ionian Islands, can be seen
in this west-looking, low-oblique photograph. Located in the Ionian Sea off the
western coast of Greece, the island has an irregular coastline and is largely
mountainous, rising to 5340 feet (1630 meters) at Mount Ainos, which in ancient
times was a temple of Zeus. The island, now almost depleted of its forests, was
once famous for its pine forests. The island’s most important city is
Argostólion. The small Ionian island of Ithaca lies east of
Cephalonia."
STS056-152-052 Himalayan Foothills and Valleys, Nepal April
1993
The brown area near the center of the photograph is a section of the
east-west trending Himalayan foothills [average elevation of 2000 feet (610
meters)] with north-south flowing rivers and deep valleys. South of these
foothills, the Tarai, a subtropical, fertile lowland, merges into part of the
northern plains of the Ganges River in northern India. A small section of the
southeast-flowing, multichanneled Gandak River of northeast India is visible
near the southwestern corner of the photograph. Many oxbow lakes and meander
scars northeast of the present watercourse denote the former stream channels
for this river. A northwest-southeast canal pattern that looks like very narrow
black lines traverses the plains. North of the foothills appear mountains with
deeply incised river valleys and elevations ranging between 8000 and 9000 feet
(2440 and 2740 meters) above sea level. Part of the capital, Kathmandu
(estimated population of 385 000), is visible in a valley along the eastern
edge of the photograph. Deforestation has removed approximately
one-third of Nepal’s alpine woodlands since the 1960s.
Space Shuttle photography provides a tool to monitor and map land use change
and the rate of deforestation.
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STS062-085-095 Panama Canal Zone, Panama March 1994
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The Panamanian government will take complete control of the canal from the
United States in 2000. A concern to scientists and enviromentalists in both
countries will be to keep the forests bordering the canal on both sides in
place to help lessen soil erosion and sedimentation. Excessive soil erosion and
sedimentation caused by deforesting the zone could lead to serious silting
problems, which could eventually close the canal. This would have profound
economic effects on both Panama and the countries of the world that use the
canal. Some sedimentation (whitish color) is visible near the center of the
photograph, coming through the Chagres River from the deforested shores of
Madden Lake, located east."
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Click to enlarge. |
Click to enlarge. |
STS046-078-026 Rondônia, Brazil August 1992
"This
photograph, showing the destruction of tropical rain forests, provides a visual
indication of the rate of deforestation that is taking place in the state of
Rondônia, which has been especially hard hit by deforestation. The
amount of clear-cut area now exceeds the area of remaining rain forest timber
stands. The solid dark green areas show the remaining tropical rain forest
canopy. Two urban areas separated by a small river can be seen near the center
of the photograph. This photograph and photograph STS-51G-034-0060, taken 7
years earlier, are representative of much larger areas where tropical rain
forests are being decimated to permit farming and grazing in Brazil, Central
America, Africa, Asia, and Australia."
Click to enlarge.
STS046-080-036 Deforestation, State of Rondônia,
Brazil August 1992
"Despite dense cloud cover along the western edge of
this photograph, this synoptic view shows more than half of the total acreage
in the State of Rondônia, Brazil. The solid, darker area is tropical rain
forest, with several wispy smoke palls blowing toward the north. A fairly
accurate trend and rate of deforestation can be calculated by comparing
photographs of an area over time. (Refer to STS-51G-034-0060 and
STS-046-078-026 for more detailed views and data of this area.)"
Click to enlarge.
STS079-785-102 Rondonia State, Brazil September 1996
"The deforested frontier, located in Rondonia State of west central Brazil,
presents a distinctive pattern of clearcut swaths expanding into the Amazon
rainforest. The land use pattern that is created by the progressive expansion
of agricultural and mining activities is rather unique to Rondonia State. The
systematic cutting of the rainforest vegetation usually starts along highways
or streams and then side roads are cut through the wilderness at regular
interval, thereby creating a very regimented looking landscape of alternating
strips of rainforest (dark) and clear cut (lighter) areas. The deforested areas
(lighter swaths) reflect the extent to which the land is used for agriculture
(ranching and farming) and forestry industries. The cattle industry is a major
economic activity in Rondonia at this time."
STS094-746-011 Rio Branco, Acre State, Brazil July 1997
"This image shows both cleared lands (lighter green terrain) and the
remaining rainforest (darker green). The runway of Presidente Medici Airport
(light colored, linear feature) south of the town helps to identify the
location of the small urban area. The deforested areas show a variety of
clear-cutting patterns that include large angular fields (possibly
plantations), paralleling cuts through the densely forested landscape, and
randomly spaced, generally smaller fields."
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Clearcut, burn. Ground zero.
Ecosystem? So what. Who cares?
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