Mouths of the Ob and the Yenisey Rivers, Russia

  • Credit

    Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

The mighty Ob (left) and Yenisey (right) Rivers pour into the Kara Sea in northwest Russia. When this image was taken on July 19, 2004, winter had briefly released its grasp on the region, though white chunks of sea ice still float near the mouths of the rivers. Streaks of brown sediment color the black waters of both rivers, interrupted by black channels of faster moving water. The sediment may have been stirred up from the bottom of the rivers by the sudden influx of melt water, or it may have entered the rivers with the run-off. Between the two large rivers, smaller, silvery rivers and streams crisscross the wetlands on the Gydanskiy Peninsula. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) flying aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this image.

Metadata

  • Sensor

    Aqua/MODIS

  • Visualization Date

    2004-07-20