Images
March 3, 2020 - Clear Skies over South America
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On March 1, 2020, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a clear-sky, true-color image of a late summer day across South America.
In the northeast (upper right), the sediment-filled Parana River snakes through green vegetation of the Espinal and Pampas ecoregions of Argentina before meeting with the Uruguay River near the Rio de La Plata. The Rio de La Plata sits between Uruguay (north) and Argentina (south). The copious mud-colored sediment gives evidence of heavy rains and flooding that occurred in northwestern Argentina in mid-February.
In the west, rugged tan topography marks the Andes Mountains, which contain the border between Argentina and Chile. A shroud of low cloud (fog) covers the Pacific Ocean and creeps over coastal Chile, hiding the land from view. Two large white areas at the edge of the Andes Mountains mark the Lago Salinas Grandes and Lago Salinas de Ambargasta. Once a single large lake, shifting tectonic plates altered the course of the rivers that carried water to the keep the lake alive. Over hundreds of years, the lake’s water evaporated, leaving only two large, mineral-crusted, salt flats behind.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/1/2020
Resolutions:
1km (2.6 MB), 500m (7.5 MB), 250m (5.6 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
On March 1, 2020, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a clear-sky, true-color image of a late summer day across South America.
In the northeast (upper right), the sediment-filled Parana River snakes through green vegetation of the Espinal and Pampas ecoregions of Argentina before meeting with the Uruguay River near the Rio de La Plata. The Rio de La Plata sits between Uruguay (north) and Argentina (south). The copious mud-colored sediment gives evidence of heavy rains and flooding that occurred in northwestern Argentina in mid-February.
In the west, rugged tan topography marks the Andes Mountains, which contain the border between Argentina and Chile. A shroud of low cloud (fog) covers the Pacific Ocean and creeps over coastal Chile, hiding the land from view. Two large white areas at the edge of the Andes Mountains mark the Lago Salinas Grandes and Lago Salinas de Ambargasta. Once a single large lake, shifting tectonic plates altered the course of the rivers that carried water to the keep the lake alive. Over hundreds of years, the lake’s water evaporated, leaving only two large, mineral-crusted, salt flats behind.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/1/2020
Resolutions:
1km (2.6 MB), 500m (7.5 MB), 250m (5.6 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
