EarthWatch: Namibia’s Desert Landscapes
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In Namibia, the town of Mariental sits at the convergence of the Kalahari Desert and the Central Plateau.
Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with the NASA Earth Observatory: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/
- NASA Earth Observatory image by Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/146892/contrasting-landscape-in-namibia
- Image of the Day story by Kasha Patel
- Adaptation to ViewSpace by Claire Blome, Margaret W. Carruthers, and Dani Player
- Music from Music for Nonprofits
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Text, Earth Watch. Exploring the Blue Planet by satellite.
Cloud formations from space.
Text, Namibia's Desert Landscape. Earth Observatory. Earth observatory dot nasa dot gov. Operational Land Imager, Landsat 8 Satellite. Namibia contains a range of extreme landscapes, sand dunes, gravel plains, rolling hills, and coastal deserts.
May 9, 2020. Kalahari Desert to the east, Central Plateau to the west. Text, Here, two contrasting geologic regions meet.
The Kalahari Desert is a large plain covered by sand that typically appears red due to a rusty coating of iron oxide.
The Kalahari Desert is a large plain covered by sand that typically appears red due to a rusty coating of iron oxide.
The Central Plateau, an elevated region that rises sharply, is divided between rugged mountains and sandy valleys.
The town of Mariental lies as the center of this region. We zoom in. Lines point to Hardap Reservoir, Fish River, and Mariental. Text, Since the town receives little precipitation, residents obtain water from the Hardap Reservoir in the northwest.
The reservoir is a breeding area for great white pelicans.
This region of Namibia is also home to black rhinos, jackals and giraffes.
To learn more, go to earth observatory dot nasa dot gov.