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STS058-073-083 Sierra Nevada Mountains and Owens Lake, California, U.S.A. October 1993
The massive Sierra Nevada Mountains and the east-facing slopes of the smaller and lower Inyo Mountains show similar erosional patterns. These surfaces, coupled with the deep, faulted river valleys throughout this section of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, give this photograph a three-dimensional quality. The Owens River Valley fault extends north-south. Owens Lake, now almost dry, is the highly reflective, roughly oval feature to the south. Landscape elevations vary from approximately 4000 feet (1220 meters) above sea level in the Owens Valley to more than 13 500 feet (4115 meters) in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Mount Whitney, at 14 495 feet (4415 meters), is visible immediately northwest of Owens Lake in the higher, snow-covered Sierra Nevada Mountains. | |
