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June 5, 2020 - Philipines
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Stretching over an area slightly larger than the American state of Arizona, the Philippines ranks as the fifth-largest island nation in the world. More than 7,100 islands and islets sit within the 300,000 sq. km (120,000 sq. mi) expanse of the Philippines, and these are surrounded by about 22,549 miles (36,289 km) of coastline. The official number of islands has changed with time. For decades the accepted number of islands within the archipelago was 7,107. According to the CIA World Fact Book, the national mapping authority reported in 2016 that hundreds of new islands had been discovered and increased the number to 7,641, although not all of those new islands have been verified.
The nation is located in Southeast Asia, bounded by the Philippine Sea on the east and the South China Sea in the west. It shares maritime boundaries with several countries. Starting at the north and moving southward these include Taiwan, Japan, Palau, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, Vietnam, and China. According to the Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), the location along the typhoon belt in the Pacific means the Philippines is visited by an average of 20 typhoons every year, five of which are destructive. Being situation in the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, makes it vulnerable to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The geographical location and physical environment also contributes to its high susceptibility to tsunami, sea level rise, storm surges, landslides, flooding, and drought.
While these hazards are substantial, the location, geographical isolation, and physical environment of the nation also bring benefits. The Philippines is known as one of the 17 mega biodiverse countries, containing two-thirds of the Earth’s biodiversity and 70 percent of the world’s plants and animal species. According to USAID, this biodiversity also provides food water energy sources, pharmaceuticals, biomass fuels, carbon sequestration and climate regulation, crop pollination, cultural and spiritual inspiration and ecotourism value.
On June 4, 2020, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of the Philippines. The image captures primarily the central region, also known as the Visayas region. Several coral reefs sit in the blue waters, particularly north of Bohol Island, the roughly round island at the southern edge of the image. In the east, blue sediment stains the water between Calicoan Island (Samar Island) and Homonhon Island.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 6/4/2020
Resolutions:
1km (78.5 KB), 500m (200.5 KB), 250m (439.9 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Stretching over an area slightly larger than the American state of Arizona, the Philippines ranks as the fifth-largest island nation in the world. More than 7,100 islands and islets sit within the 300,000 sq. km (120,000 sq. mi) expanse of the Philippines, and these are surrounded by about 22,549 miles (36,289 km) of coastline. The official number of islands has changed with time. For decades the accepted number of islands within the archipelago was 7,107. According to the CIA World Fact Book, the national mapping authority reported in 2016 that hundreds of new islands had been discovered and increased the number to 7,641, although not all of those new islands have been verified.
The nation is located in Southeast Asia, bounded by the Philippine Sea on the east and the South China Sea in the west. It shares maritime boundaries with several countries. Starting at the north and moving southward these include Taiwan, Japan, Palau, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, Vietnam, and China. According to the Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), the location along the typhoon belt in the Pacific means the Philippines is visited by an average of 20 typhoons every year, five of which are destructive. Being situation in the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, makes it vulnerable to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The geographical location and physical environment also contributes to its high susceptibility to tsunami, sea level rise, storm surges, landslides, flooding, and drought.
While these hazards are substantial, the location, geographical isolation, and physical environment of the nation also bring benefits. The Philippines is known as one of the 17 mega biodiverse countries, containing two-thirds of the Earth’s biodiversity and 70 percent of the world’s plants and animal species. According to USAID, this biodiversity also provides food water energy sources, pharmaceuticals, biomass fuels, carbon sequestration and climate regulation, crop pollination, cultural and spiritual inspiration and ecotourism value.
On June 4, 2020, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of the Philippines. The image captures primarily the central region, also known as the Visayas region. Several coral reefs sit in the blue waters, particularly north of Bohol Island, the roughly round island at the southern edge of the image. In the east, blue sediment stains the water between Calicoan Island (Samar Island) and Homonhon Island.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 6/4/2020
Resolutions:
1km (78.5 KB), 500m (200.5 KB), 250m (439.9 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
