Earth from Space - Image Description

STS043-608-038 Ishigaki Island, Ryukyu Islands August 1991
The heavily populated island of Ishigaki in the southern Ryukyu Islands can be seen in the near-nadir looking view. As with all of the Ryukyu Islands, Ishigaki Island is the exposed top of a submarine mountain range and is volcanic in origin. Though some wooded hills can be seen on the island, Ishigaki is mostly flat with some slightly undulating terrain. Coral reefs surround most of the island. The city of Ishigaki is an agricultural center where sake and dried tuna are produced. The island of Iriomote is discernible at the bottom left of the image.

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