Return to Earth From Space Home
Earth from Space logo Image Information Earth from Space logo

Display a Screen Layout for Printing

IMAGE: gray corner       IMAGE: gray corner
  Image: Geographic Location Direction Photo #: ISS028-E-44444 Date: Sep. 2011
Geographic Region: CHINA
Feature: JUNGGAR BASIN, SAND DUNES, IRTYSH RIVER, WETLANDS

Ordering information for space photography
 
IMAGE: gray corner     IMAGE: gray corner

Image: gray corner     Image: gray corner
  View Low-Resolution Image  
  Sand Dunes, Junggar Basin, Northwestern China

This striking astronaut photograph taken from the International Space Station highlights a sand dune field within the Burqin-Haba River-Jimunai Desert near the borders of China, Mongolia, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The dune field (approximately 32 km long) is located immediately to the west-northwest of the city of Burqin (not shown), and is part of the Junggar Basin, a region of active petroleum production in northwestern China. The Irtysh River, with associated wetlands and riparian vegetation (appearing grey-green in the image) flows from its headwaters in the Altay Mountains to the east towards Siberia to the west (right to left across the image).

Tan sandy linear dunes at image center on the south side of the Irtysh River dominate the view. The linear dunes are formed from mobile barchan (crescent-shaped) dunes moving from left to right in this view; the barchans eventually merge to form the large linear dunes which can reach 50 -100 meters in height. Sand moving along the southern edge of the dune field appears to be feeding a southeastern lobe with a separate population of linear dunes (image lower right).

The Burqin-Haba River-Jimunai Desert area also includes darker gravel covered surfaces that form pavements known locally as gobi. These are somewhat indistinguishable from vegetated areas arresting some of the dunes at the resolution of the astronaut photograph, but tend to be located on the flat regions between the dunes.
 
Image: gray corner     Image: gray corner

Images: All Available Images Low-Resolution 312k
Mission: ISS028  
Roll - Frame: E - 44444
Geographical Name: CHINA  
Features: JUNGGAR BASIN, SAND DUNES, IRTYSH RIVER, WETLANDS  
Center Lat x Lon: 47.7N x 86.4E
Film Exposure:   N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP: 10
 
Camera: N2
 
Camera Tilt: 08   LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length: 180  
 
Nadir to Photo Center Direction: N   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: 1390  
 
Date: 20110908   YYYYMMDD
Time: 095951   GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat: 47.2N  
Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon: 86.4E  
Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth: 248   Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude: 202   nautical miles
Sun Elevation: 26   Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views: BASIN, DESERT, DUNE  
Water Views: RIVER  
Atmosphere Views:  
Man Made Views:  
City Views: MOBILE  
Photo is not associated with any sequences


NASA
Home Page
JSC
Home Page
JSC Digital
Image Collection
Earth Science &
Remote Sensing

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