Start Date: End Date: Published Date Data Date
Data acquired January 15, 2012 720 x 360 JPEG
Data acquired January 15, 2012 6400 x 6400 9 MB - JPEG
Data acquired January 6, 2012 720 x 360 JPEG
Data acquired January 6, 2012 6400 x 6400 10 MB - JPEG
In the Pilbara region of Western Australia, between the Hamersley and Chichester Ranges, lies an impermanent river. It is part of the catchment of the Fortescue River, which flows toward the Indian Ocean. In January 2012, heavy rains from Tropical Cyclone Heidi filled the normally dry riverbed near the towns of Wittenoom and Marillana.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured these images on January 15, 2012 (top), and January 6, 2012 (bottom). Both images use a combination of visible and infrared light to better distinguish between water and land. Water ranges in color from electric blue to navy. Vegetation is green. Bare ground is earth-toned. Clouds are pale blue-green.
Separated by just nine days, these images show significant changes. The same river valley that is nearly dry on January 6 is filled with water on January 15. Besides watering ephemeral rivers, the storm hampered iron-ore production in Pilbara, according to news reports.
NASA images courtesy LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Michon Scott.
Published January 17, 2012 Data acquired January 15, 2012