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			Photo #: STS61A-43-78 Date: Nov. 1985 Geographic Region: MALI Feature: NIGER DELTA, L. FAGUIBINE



	STS61A-43-0078 Inland Delta of the Niger River, Mali October 1985 Most of the area shown in this synoptic, low-oblique photograph was once a large inland lake. During the ice age about 12 000 to 15 000 years ago, more rain fell in north Africa than falls now. As the ice retreated northward and the temperature warmed, the Sahara Desert in north Africa received less rain and became much drier. Over centuries, the conditions that now exist developed. The old lake silt affords fertile, black soils with a relatively high humus content (darker, productive areas). The Inland Delta area of the Niger River in central Mali is a very important agricultural region where large-scale, mechanized cultivation occurs because of effective irrigation practices. Even though devastating droughts have occurred during the last several decades, some ranches exist. This entire region falls climatically into the steppe or semiarid category, normally averaging between 10 and 20 inches (25 and 50 centimeters) of precipitation annually. The region is part of Africa known as the Sahel, a semiarid zone that extends across most of Africa between the southern margin of the arid Sahara Desert and the moist tropical savanna to the south. In this zone, chronic drought and desertification have contributed to famines during the decades from the 1960s through the 1980s. East-west trending, longitudinal sand dunes can be observed along the northeastern meanders of the Niger River as it flows gradually to the east-northeast. Orientation of the sand dunes has routed tributaries into a natural trellis irrigation system within the delta.

Images:	All Available Images Low-Resolution 61k
Mission:	STS61A
Roll - Frame:	43 - 78
Geographical Name:	MALI
Features:	NIGER DELTA, L. FAGUIBINE
Center Lat x Lon:	16.0N x 4W
Film Exposure:	N	N=Normal exposure, U=Under exposed, O=Over exposed, F=out of Focus
Percentage of Cloud Cover-CLDP:	20
Camera:	HB
Camera Tilt:	55	LO=Low Oblique, HO=High Oblique, NV=Near Vertical
Camera Focal Length:	100
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	Y=Yes there is an adjacent picture of the same area, N=No there isn't
Orbit Number:	44
Date:	19851102	YYYYMMDD
Time:	101418	GMT HHMMSS
Nadir Lat:	12.1N	Latitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Nadir Lon:	5.4W	Longitude of suborbital point of spacecraft
Sun Azimuth:	133	Clockwise angle in degrees from north to the sun measured at the nadir point
Space Craft Altitude:	175	nautical miles
Sun Elevation:	51	Angle in degrees between the horizon and the sun, measured at the nadir point
Land Views:	BASIN, DESERT, DUNE, PLAIN
Water Views:	RIVER, CHANNEL, DELTA, SWAMP, LAKE
Atmosphere Views:
Man Made Views:	AGRICULTURE
City Views:

Associated Photos in Sequence:

Photo #: STS61A-43-78 ** Currently displayed photo **
Description: MALI, INLAND DELTA OF NIGER R.-1985; CONDITIONS DURING SAHEL DROUGHT
Sequence ID: 9A

Photo #: STS037-77-15
Description: MALI, INLAND DELTA OF NIGER R.-1991; CONDITIONS DURING SAHEL DROUGHT
Sequence ID: 9B

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