April 14, 2022 - Upemba Depression

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pemba Depression
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Deep in the heart of Central Africa, an ancient depression and a long
river combine to create a vast marshy area. It is here, in the Upemba
Depression of the Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo,
where the Lualaba River widens to create a myriad of marshy lakes. Of
the roughly fifty lakes found in the Depression, Lake Upemba is the
largest, with a surface area roughly 200 square miles (500 square
kilometers). Lake Upemba, like many of the adjacent lakes, is filled
with floating islands papyrus and other dense wetland vegetation.

This region has been home to humans since at least 700 A.D., according
to archaeological records. In modern times, it has been enormously
biodiverse, with more than 1,800 difference species, including lion,
leopard, elephant, buffalo and the Katanga impala. The Upemba National
Park was one of the first parks established in the Democratic Republic
of Congo. Established in 1939, the park spans an area of 1.7 million
hectares. It has been recognized as an Important Bird and Biodiversity
Area (IBA) by Birdlife International. Unfortunately, pressure from
poachers, fishing, and other human needs has reduced number of animals
as well as biodiversity within the region over the last several
decades.

On April 11, 2022, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
(MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of
the many lakes in the Upemba Depression.

Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 4/11/2022
Resolutions: 1km (39.8 KB), 500m (86.7 KB), 250m (194.1 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC



https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-04-14

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