Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Science Snap (#24): The psychedelic Zambezi flood plain

Zambezi River, Zambia. credit: ESA

Zambezi River, Zambia. credit: ESA

This colourful image shows the Zambezi River’s floodplain in Zambia. The image was created from three acquisitions from Envisat’s radar instrument that were merged together. Each acquisition was assigned a colour and when combined show changes in the floodplain between each satellite acquisition.

The white patch of pixels in the upper right quadrant marks the city of Mongu and appears white as few changes occur between each satellite image. In light green and running up the center of the image you can track the main channel of the Zambezi river. However, one image was taken during the wet season when the water levels rise up to the edge of the town. The range of colours in the image attest to the dramatic changes in water level of the Zambezi between wet and dry seasons.

Original ESA article can be found here.

Elspeth is currently undertaking a PhD in Geology at the University of Bristol. Her research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of ground deformation seen at a number of Kenyan Rift volcanoes. Elspeth tweets as @eamrobertson.