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  Image: Geographic Location Direction Photo #: ISS007-E-14361 Date: Sep. 2003
Geographic Region: ZIMBABWE
Feature: ZAMBEZI RIVER, VICTORIA FALLS

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  Victoria Falls, Zambezi River: Victoria Falls is one of the most famous tourist sites in subsaharan Africa. Details of the Falls are visible in this image taken with the 800 mm lens by Astronaut Edward Lu from the Space Station on September 4, 2003.

A major river in south-central Africa, the Zambezi River flows from western Zambia to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique. In the sector imaged here, it flows southeast (top left to bottom right) in a wide bed before plunging suddenly 130 meters over the Victoria Falls into a narrow gorge. The falls and their famous spray clouds are 1700 m long, the longest sheet of falling water in the world. The falls appear as a ragged white line. The small town of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe appears just west (left) of the falls, with smaller tourist facilities on the east bank in Zambia. The international railroad bridge over the second gorge (between Zimbabwe and Zambia) can be seen in the detailed view on the bottom (arrow).

The positions of the falls are controlled by linear fault lines in the underlying basalt rocks. The falls have moved upstream (bottom to top) by intense river erosion, elongating the zig-zag gorge in the process. Prior positions of the strongly linear falls can be detected. The earliest on this cropped view may have been the longest (dashed line). The zig-zags represent subsequent positions, all with the characteristic water-worn lip on the upstream side. The falls will continue to erode northward.
 
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Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 73k
Mission: ISS007  
Roll - Frame: E - 14361
Geographical Name: ZIMBABWE  
Features: ZAMBEZI RIVER, VICTORIA FALLS  
Center Lat x Lon: 18S x 26.0E
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 10
 
Camera: E4
 
Camera Tilt: 16   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 800  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: SW   The direction from the nadir to the center point, N=North, S=South, E=East, W=West
Stereo?:   Y=Yes there is an adjacent picture of the same area, N=No there isn't
Orbit Number: 3338  
 
Date: 20030904   YYYYMMDD
Time: 110147   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 17.2S  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 26.6E  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 333   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 205   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 63   Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views: EROSION, FAULT  
Water Views: RIVER  
Atmosphere Views:  
Man Made Views: BRIDGE  
City Views: VICTORIA  
Photo is not associated with any sequences


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