December 14, 2019 - The Aïr mountains in Niger

Surrounded by the Sahara Desert, the domes of the Aïr Mountains rise suddenly and dramatically, appearing almost like an ochre island of rock amid a sea of swirling orange-tinged sand.

These stunning mountains were formed when magma flowed into pre-existing cracks and caverns in bedrock, creating dikes. In some places, bubbling magma formed hollow domes, some of which collapsed, leaving a circular crack, which was later filled with additional magma. This, in turn, created stunning, unusually oval or round geological features that are unique. Over time, these magma intrusions and the bedrock have been lifted, now sitting about 7,000 feet (2,000 meters) high.

The rugged Aïr Mountain Range possesses a wide variety of habitats, including cliffs, canyons, valleys, watering holes, and plateau. The diversity of habitat gives shelter to about 40 species of mammal, 165 species of birds, and 18 species of reptiles. In 2013, these mountains were one of the last strongholds of the Addax, likely holding most of the world’s population of the critically endangered animals. Currently, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates that there are only 30-90 of these animals left in the wild, and any sightings in these mountains have become very rare.

On December 12, 2019, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a beautiful true-color image of the Aïr Mountains of Niger.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 12/12/2019
Resolutions: 1km (298.3 KB), 500m (720.3 KB), 250m (423.4 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC