Earth from Space - Image Description

STS035-076-054 Port Hedland Area, Western Australia, Australia December 1990
The two highly reflective features are part of a flourishing salt mining operation (salt evaporation-pans) along the shoreline in northern Western Australia. The two north flowing river systems (flow is to the right) are the Turner and the Yule River (most westerly). Although these rivers flow only intermittently through the arid region, the tropical rains that do fall during the summer months have sufficient flow to build sizable deltas (slightly darker, more vegetated landscape) along the coast. There is also a narrow band of mangrove forest (darker areas) along the coast.

This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Earth Science & Remote Sensing Unit, ARES Division, Exploration Integration Science Directorate.