Earth from Space - Image Description

STS073-706-005 Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, U.S.A. October 1995
The low-lying, swampy wetlands; estuaries; and river mouths of coastal southern South Carolina are apparent in this north-looking photograph. Two islands are of particular note--Hilton Head Island, the larger island south of the Coosawhatchie River, noted for its recreational activities (lower right corner), and Parris Island, a U.S. Marine Corps Training Center along the north shore near the mouth of the Coosawhatchie River. The reflective intersecting runways of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Base lie near the small city of Beaufort (barely discernible). Visible are several tributaries of the Salkehatchie and Combahee Rivers immediately north of the air base (upper right corner); Interstate Highway 95 and sections of U.S. Highway 17, light, linear features that extend northward; and part of the extensive, vegetated Savannah River floodplain (lower left corner).

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